Biden administration tells facilities for migrant children to reopen to pre-pandemic levels
Source: CNN
The Biden administration has notified facilities caring for migrant children that they can open back up to pre-Covid-19 levels, acknowledging "extraordinary circumstances" due to a rising number of minors crossing the US-Mexico border, according to a memo obtained by CNN.
The increase in arrivals of unaccompanied children put additional strain on the immigration system, which was operating under limited capacity as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
"We recognize the challenge of having these unaccompanied children come across the border and the influx that we're certainly preparing for and, and preparing to approach," said White House press secretary Jen Psaki Friday.
The Department of Health and Human Services is charged with the care of unaccompanied migrant children until they're placed with a sponsor, like a parent or relative, in the US, but with precautions to avoid spread of Covid-19 in place, the department is only able to use a little more than half of the beds it has for children.
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/05/politics/immigration-border-crowding-covid/index.html
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