[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