Nearly 14,000 unaccompanied minors referred to HHS so far this year by Anna Giaritell
Nearly 14,000 unaccompanied minors referred to HHS so far this year
by Anna Giaritelli | February 07, 2019 02:40 PM
https://pbs.twimg.com/card_img/10935...g&name=600x314 Almost 14,000 children who arrived at the southern border and were taken into custody have been transferred into the care of the Department of Health and Human Services since the start of the fiscal year, according to an HHS official.
"Thus far, this fiscal year, we've received just under 14,000 referrals," Commander Jonathan White, the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps for HHS, testified Thursday before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. The fiscal year starts Oct. 1
White did not specify if those minors were people who arrived at the border alone or if it included some children who were separated from a parent while in Customs and Border Protection or Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.
CBP data from fiscal 2019 shows a total 15,013 minors arrived by themselves between October and December. White didn't clarify if the nearly 14,000 children referred to HHS is the total from October through December, or October through January.
HHS has seen between 40,000 and 60,000 children referred to them annually in the last few years. Last year, 49,100 children were moved from DHS agencies to HHS, which works to find a sponsor or family member to keep them.
White said he has no idea whether the number of kids being referred to HHS will increase, decrease, or remain the same in the months ahead.
"No one can predict how many kids will cross the river tomorrow," said White.
Children who arrive at the border without a parent usually travel with a large group or smuggler who has been paid by the parent to get the child to the border.
The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 mandates minors from countries other than Canada and Mexico who arrive alone at the border should not be turned away or deported because they may be trafficking victims.
Last spring, the Trump administration moved to deter families from traveling to the U.S., where tens of thousands illegally entered the country to then turn themselves over to federal law enforcement and claim asylum.
More than 2,000 children who arrived at the border with parents last spring were taken from their parents and handed to HHS's Office of Refugee Resettlement for care. The "family separations" took place as a result of a Justice Department mandate for all adults who illegally entered the U.S. to be prosecuted, prompting CBP to refer parents for criminal charges.
Because children were unable to be held with their parents in jails and ICE is not legally permitted to hold families more than 20 days, the families were broken up.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/n...-far-this-year
