[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 55 (Thursday, March 21, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Page 17413]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-06517]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families

[CFDA Number: 93.576]


Announcement of the Award of an Urgent Single-Source Grant to the 
Center for Survivors of Torture in Dallas, TX

AGENCY: Office of Refugee Resettlement, Administration for Children and 
Families, Department of Health and Human Services.

ACTION: Announcement of the award of an urgent single-source grant to 
the Center for Survivors of Torture to provide mental health services 
for refugees.

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SUMMARY: The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of 
Refugee Resettlement (ORR) announces the award of an urgent single-
source grant in the amount of $250,000 to the Center for Survivors of 
Torture (CST) in Dallas, TX to ensure incoming refugee populations in 
Texas have access to mental health services.

DATES: The project period for the award is February 1, 2013 through 
January 31, 2014.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kenneth Tota, Deputy Director, Office 
of Refugee Resettlement, 901 D Street SW., Washington, DC 20047. 
Telephone: 202-401-4858. Email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Approximately 45,000 individual refugees 
reside in the areas covered by the Center for Survivors of Torture. 
Texas and the surrounding region have a demonstrated history of being a 
top resettlement location with one of the highest concentrations of 
refugees in the United States. In the past few years, the Office of 
Refugee Resettlement (ORR) has seen an increasing need for mental 
health services associated with the three primary refugee populations 
from Iraq, Burma and Bhutan who have suffered extreme trauma and 
torture due to war and genocide in those countries. Refugees from 
Bhutan have specifically demonstrated a high incidence of suicide upon 
arrival to the U.S. ORR has been working closely with the Centers for 
Disease Control (CDC) to assess this situation. The CDC recently 
published a study recommending enhanced mental health services for 
incoming refugees from Bhutan.
    This fiscal year the program is seeing a significant increase in 
resettlement of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo. The 
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has determined 
this group is particularly at risk due to decades of extreme violence 
in the Democratic Republic of Congo and recent arrivals have shown a 
compelling need for mental health services upon arrival. Furthermore, 
CST is the only accredited mental health care provider of specialized 
refugee mental health treatment services in Texas and the surrounding 
area.
    CST services are critical to meeting refugee mental health needs by 
providing services such as an initial assessment, counseling to: 
children, adolescents, adults, couples, and families. Additionally, CST 
provides group therapy, psychoeducational groups, testing for mental 
health conditions, and medication management. In addition to these 
direct services, CST also provides training to other agencies in the 
area to include schools, health clinics, and social services agencies 
on refugee mental health issues.
    Due to the high number of refugees being resettled in this region, 
with no other demonstrated provider of expert mental health services to 
this population, this grant is urgent and critical to those in need of 
such services. According to the Department of State, Texas is projected 
to receive the highest number of refugees admitted to the U.S. in FY13. 
Through this grant ORR will ensure there is no disruption in much 
needed mental health services to these particularly at risk 
populations. This urgent grant will support the provision of these much 
needed mental health services to ensure these refugees are afforded a 
successful path to self-sufficiency.

    Statutory Authority:  Section 412 (c)(1)(A)(iii) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended and the Refugee 
Assistance Extension Act of 1986, Pub. L. 99-605 (8 U.S.C. 1101).

Eskinder Negash,
Director, Office of Refugee Resettlement.
[FR Doc. 2013-06517 Filed 3-20-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-P