HHS has spent more than $40 million in two months to house and reunite more than 2,500 children separated from their parents under President Donald Trump's border policy, Politico reports.
Housing the children cost the agency $30 million, and another $10 million was spent to hire 100 case managers and 50 support staff to assist with the children's cases. HHS Secretary Alex Azar also spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to deploy emergency response personnel to the refugee centers.
As HHS shifts into overdrive to reunite the families by a court-mandated deadline of July 26, more spending is on the horizon. The Politico report anticipates transporting the children to immigration centers to reunite them with their parents will also be a major cost.
The funding has been redirected from Obama-era refugee funding and unspent funds from the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program. Officials were also gearing up in June to transfer $263 million within the agency to the refugee office's unaccompanied children program, but this transfer was not made. Congress is becoming increasingly critical of the agency's spending and lack of transparency, according to the report.
Advocates who spoke with Politico note the agency should request emergency funding to address the crisis so as not to take funding from other critical health priorities.
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