‘Top To Bottom’ Review Of Refugee Resettlement Program To Be Conducted By HHS
The refugee resettlement office has been criticized recently because of its "zero tolerance policy" at the border and the director's efforts to prevent teen migrants from getting abortions. Meanwhile, court filings reveal that authorities have held some immigrant teens for months, violating a 20-year-old court order on how long minors can be detained.
Politico:
HHS Reviews Refugee Operations As Trump Calls For Border Crackdown
The Trump administration is eyeing a shake-up of its refugee operation — and scrutinizing its controversial director — as President Donald Trump steps up his call for another crackdown along the U.S.-Mexico border. A top official at the Department of Health and Human Services, which runs the refugee resettlement program, is conducting what she called a “top to bottom” review of the program, three months after the migrant crisis paralyzed the agency last summer. (Diamond, 10/23)
Reuters:
Hundreds Of Migrant Children Held In U.S. Tent City For Months: Filings
U.S. authorities have held some immigrant children who entered the country illegally and without a parent in a temporary "tent city" in Texas for months, violating a 20-year-old court order on how long minors can be detained, according to court filings by civil rights lawyers and immigration advocates. More than 500 children have been housed in tents near Tornillo, Texas since August, and 46 have been held there since June, according to a Friday court filing in Los Angeles federal court by civil rights organizations and advocacy groups representing migrant children. (Hals and Cooke, 10/22)
And in other news —
CQ:
Immigrant Children May Face Loss Of Medical Coverage Under Plan
A Trump administration proposal aimed at immigrants who rely on government programs could lead to as many as 1.7 million children who need medical care leaving Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, a new analysis shows. Health care experts warn that immigrant parents may remove their children from health programs because of fear and confusion over a recent proposed rule that would change so-called federal “public charge” policies, which affect people’s ability to obtain legal permanent residency. Even children who were born in the United States but whose parents are not citizens could be harmed. (Williams, 10/23)