Appendix B: Federal Agency Reports
Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration
The United States leads the world in providing assistance to refugees and victims of conflict. The U.S. resettles about one-half of the refugees referred by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for resettlement each year. The Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) has primary responsibility for formulating U.S. policies on these issues and for administering U.S. refugee assistance and admissions programs overseas.
Of the 27,113 refugees admitted to the U.S. in FY 2002, the largest number came from the former Soviet Union (9,978) and the former Yugoslavia (5,450). As in previous years, the President authorized in-country processing in the former Soviet Union, Vietnam and Cuba for persons who would qualify as refugees if they live outside their country of origin. In addition, the U.S. offered resettlement to refugees outside their countries of origin who were deemed to be of “special humanitarian concern” to the U.S. Highest priority for resettlement was given to refugees referred by UNHCR and by U.S. Embassies. A number of particularly vulnerable groups, including persecuted religious and ethnic minorities, were determined to be of special concern to the U.S. and given priority processing.
Department of Homeland Security
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) administers the immigration and naturalization laws relating to the interview, determination, admission, and naturalization of refugees and asylees. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) within the DHS is responsible for the interview of refugee applicants and the subsequent approval or denial of requests for refugee status. In FY 2002, immigration officers posted at overseas locations and asylum officers on detail conducted refugee determination interviews in approximately 40 different countries. DHS also inspects and admits approved refugee applicants to the U.S. and processes refugees’ applications for adjustment of status to lawful permanent resident. In FY 2002, 26,787 refugees were admitted to the U.S., representing 65 nationalities, with refugees from the Ukraine, Bosnia, and Russia constituting the largest portion of the refugee admissions.
Domestically, officers in eight asylum offices interview and make determinations on the cases of asylum seekers who have reached the U.S. In FY 2002, the asylum officers completed 83,034 cases, granting approval in 18,998 cases. The countries with the greatest number of asylum approvals were China, Colombia, India, and Ethiopia.
Information about the USCIS and the processing of refugee and asylees can be found on the internet website http://www.immigration.gov
Office of Global Health Affairs
FY 2002 constituted a continuation of the preventive health services that began in 1999 with an extensive needs assessment led by the U.S. DHHS Office of Global Health Affairs. As a result, State refugee preventive health programs today provide health education, health promotion, and referral and follow-up services to newly arriving refugees and asylees in addition to traditional health assessments.
Health assessments conducted in the U.S. are voluntary. These health assessments of refugees serve important public and personal health purposes. For example, they help to identify individuals who have been exposed to TB and treat them, assuring that they will not develop infectious TB at some later time. Additional assessments identify Hepatitis B and other sexually transmitted diseases, as well as other infectious diseases that were not identified before the refugees’ arrival to the U.S. Health assessments include needed immunizations for adults and children. Additionally, many refugees have health conditions which prevent them from entering the U.S. and are not of public health concern, but which negatively affect their ability to become self-sufficient once settled. ORR-funded health assessments identify these personal needs and assure that refugees are appropriately cared for and treated.
Health assessments provided to asylees are the only public health screening these individuals receive until they adjust their status to permanent residents. Adjustment of status occurs at least one year after they are granted asylum.
Twenty-two States in FY 2002 applied for and received ORR Preventive Health Grants. Nearly 43,900 refugees, asylees, Cuban parolees, and Haitian entrants received health assessments in FY 2002.