Dear Resettlement Directors-
Please see important updates on the APA program, below.
Urgent Fort Lee and Medically Vulnerable Cases Requiring Assurance
In an effort to empty out Fort Lee military base and expedite the departure of all medically fragile APA cases, PRM is using these two case groups to conduct a pilot assurance frontloading exercise. Yesterday, PRM batch-assigned slightly over 4,000 parolees pending assurances to the nine Resettlement Agencies, and USCCB’s processing staff are placing our allotted share of cases to affiliates. These cases will be reflected in today’s (11/2) “Allocated, Not Assured” spreadsheet in your OneDrive folder by 11:00am EST.
USCCB kindly requests that you urgently review your “Allocated, Not Assured” cases tomorrow, and prioritize making a decision on all “Fort Lee” cases in the “assigned_case.destination.name” column as well as all cases with a “Yes” in the “assigned_case.vulnerability.name.” Since PRM is requiring all these cases be assured by Wednesday November 3, USCCB requests that you either accept or reject these cases no later than 10:00AM EST on Nov 3.
It is important to note that PRM is treating these cases as expedites, and the goal is to depart all Fort Lee cases by November 7 and all medically vulnerable cases by November 15. Therefore, you should expect these cases to travel quickly after you have assured them.
You will also note that cases with US ties in other locations might be allocated to your affiliate. These are cases with US ties in what are considered “impacted locations” and, given they are not closely related to their US ties, they are being treated as “no UST tie” cases. You are not expected to call the US tie for these cases since they will not be resettled with their US tie.
Please reach out to your designated Pre-Arrival Case Manager (PACM) if you have any questions.
Action Required: PRM Assessing Need for Halt on Additional R&P Refugee Travel Bookings Until January 15, 2022
Given the anticipated high number of parolee arrivals over the next few months, PRM is considering temporarily halting additional R&P refugee travel bookings between now and January 15, 2022 to better support the resettlement infrastructure to serve APA arrivals. USCCB is seeking your input on whether your agency would prefer to continue receiving refugee arrivals or if you prefer a temporary pause on arrivals. Please complete the survey linked here no later than 10:00AM EST on Wednesday, November 3 stating your preference. If you do not respond, USCCB will assume your preference is to have a pause on R&P refugee arrivals until January 15.
For affiliates with existing refugee travel bookings, it is important to note these cases will travel as planned. PRM consideration is only in relation to future travel bookings.
Translated Effects of Moving Resource
USCCB has translated the Effects of Moving resource into Dari, Farsi, and Pashto. This client facing resource can be shared with cases that might be considering moving to another area. It walks clients through what to consider when moving, including housing, furniture and household goods, public benefits, funds, and other services, which may not be available in a new area.
CDC News/Updates: Operation Allies Welcome (OAW): Medical Records, Specific Notifications, Domestic Medical Examinations, and Resources for Afghanistan Evacuees
Please find a notification letter linked here discussing CDC news/updates from Operation Allies Welcome (OAW) concerning: medical records, specific notifications, domestic medical examinations and resources for Afghanistan evacuees. If you have any questions, please contact CDC at irmhdomestic@cdc.gov.
Reminder: USCCB Webinar: Emergency Case Management for APA Clients
Thursday, November 4 from 1:00 - 2:00pm ET
In response to the momentous asks and short timeline associated with the Afghan Placement and Assistance (APA) program, sites are working hard to ensure clients are provided top notch services during an influx of arrivals. This webinar will focus on strategies for prioritizing certain services for your APA clients according to the flexibilities provided for in the APA Cooperative Agreement.
By the end of this 60-minute session you will be able to
• Identify immediate client needs
• Prioritize the most important APA services
• Utilize flexibilities in the APA Guidelines to best serve clients
In Solidarity,
Rachel Pollock
Director, Resettlement Services
