Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Anxiety Stemming From Parental Separation Can Cause Chronic Health Problems In Adulthood, Experts Warn
The Hill: Zero Tolerance Policy Stirs Fears In Health Community
Thousands of migrant children separated from their families at the U.S. border could face significant health issues in the short and long term, health experts warn. The impact of the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy, which sends parents to detention centers and kids to government-run shelters, could extend far past the initial trauma of separation. (Hellmann, 6/18)
The Wall Street Journal: The Effects Of Parental Separation On Children
Many medical associations and thousands of mental-health professionals have criticized the Trump administration’s policy of dividing immigrant families at the southern border, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Psychological Association. In many cases, professionals cite the negative health effects parental separation has on children. In response to the backlash over his immigration policy, President Donald Trump called on Congress Tuesday to give his administration the power to detain and deport migrant families as a unit, saying he considered that the “only solution to the border crisis.” (Sweedler, 6/20)
The Washington Post: Trump Urges House GOP To Fix Immigration System, Expresses No Strong Preference On Rival Bills Amid Uproar Over Family Separations
President Trump implored anxious House Republicans to fix the nation’s immigration system but did not offer a clear path forward amid the growing uproar over his administration’s decision to separate migrant families at the border. Huddling with the GOP at the Capitol on Tuesday evening, Trump stopped short of giving a full-throated endorsement to immigration legislation meant to unite the moderate and conservative wings of the House Republican conference. (DeBonis, Rucker, Kim and Wagner, 6/19)
The New York Times: Fact-Checking The Trump Administration’s Case For Child Separation At The Border
President Trump and top administration officials have continued to defend their practice of breaking up families who arrive at the border in the face of bipartisan outcry, criticism from the United Nations and a lawsuit. They’ve denied the existence of a policy and that they were the first to enforce it, pointed to surges in illegal immigration and fraud, trotted out decades-old court cases and human trafficking laws, blamed Democrats and even cited the Bible. Here are their defenses, fact-checked. (Qiu, 6/19)
The Associated Press: Youngest Migrants Held In 'Tender Age' Shelters
Trump administration officials have been sending babies and other young children forcibly separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border to at least three "tender age" shelters in South Texas, The Associated Press has learned. Lawyers and medical providers who have visited the Rio Grande Valley shelters described play rooms of crying preschool-age children in crisis. The government also plans to open a fourth shelter to house hundreds of young migrant children in Houston, where city leaders denounced the move Tuesday. (Burke and Mendoza, 6/19)
The Associated Press: No Clear Plan Yet On How To Reunite Parents With Children
Trump administration officials say they have no clear plan yet on how to reunite the thousands of children separated from their families at the border since the implementation of a zero-tolerance policy in which anyone caught entering the U.S. illegally is criminally prosecuted. "This policy is relatively new," said Steven Wagner, an acting assistant secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services "We're still working through the experience of reunifying kids with their parents after adjudication." (Merchant and Long, 6/20)
The Associated Press: AP Explains: US Has Split Up Families Throughout Its History
Some critics of the forced separation of Latino children from their migrant parents say the practice is unprecedented. But it's not the first time the U.S. government has split up families, detained children or allowed others to do so. Throughout American history, during times of war and unrest, authorities have cited various reasons and laws to take children away from their parents. Here are some examples. (Contreras, 6/20)
Reveal: Migrant Children Sent To Shelters With Histories Of Abuse Allegations
Taxpayers have paid more than $1.5 billion in the past four years to private companies operating immigrant youth shelters accused of serious lapses in care, including neglect and sexual and physical abuse, a Reveal investigation has found. In nearly all cases, the federal government has continued to place migrant children with the companies even after serious allegations were raised and after state inspectors cited shelters with serious deficiencies, government and other records show. (Bogado, Michels, Swales and Walters, 6/20)
