Overview
- Federal fiscal year 2024 ended on September 30th with 100,034 refugees resettled in the United States. Top communities resettled in Washington state include refugees from Afghanistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Syria, Ukraine, and Venezuela. Washington state remains in the top 10 states with the highest resettlement numbers.
- There are several new pathways for refugee resettlement arrivals in the US, including virtual casework and private sponsorship. Eligibility for health benefits and services once in the US is the same for all pathways.
- Asylum limits put in place earlier this summer have recently been made permanent by executive action, restricting the ability for migrants to claim asylum in the US.
- Locally, Washington state is funding a new project focusing on services for asylum seekers, the Washington Migrant and Asylum Seeker Support Project.
- Washington’s Apple Health Medicaid expansion for undocumented immigrants has reached enrolment limits. However, individuals can still apply for coverage in case new spaces open up.
- Anti-immigrant rhetoric is again at a height as we approach the US election, with serious physical and mental health implications for immigrant communities. A new resource out from CARRE can help providers support patients impacted, and Migrant Clinicians Network has an upcoming webinar series discussing this impact on clinicians and patients.
National/Policy Updates
Refugee Resettlement Numbers: A new federal fiscal year (FY25) began on October 1, with President Biden setting the refugee ceiling at 125,000 arrivals. In federal fiscal year 2024, the United States resettled 100,034 refugees- the highest number in three decades (Global Refuge). The top 5 countries of origin for refugees resettled in FY24 are shown in the chart.
- New Pathways for Refugees: Over the past few years, new arrival pathways have been created to complement the traditional refugee resettlement program. Here is a brief overview of these new pathways.
– Standard Reception and Placement -This is the traditional refugee resettlement pathway. Refugees are connected with a refugee resettlement agency who contracts with the US government to provide a variety of services in the first 90 days of arrival.
– Remote Placement– In this model, non-resettlement agency community organizations provide resettlement services to refugees placed in remote locations over 100 miles from a resettlement agency site.
– Independent/Cash Based Resettlement– For those refugees with a US Tie (usually a close family member or friend) who can provide resettlement services. In this pathway, the new arrivals would be provided the same cash benefits as they would from a resettlement agency, but all resettlement services would be completed by their US Tie. See the Cultural Orientation Resource Exchange page on new resettlement pathways for more information.
– Virtual Resettlement– This model allows for a collaboration between a refugee’s US Tie, who provides housing, and a virtual caseworker, who provides remote services. See the International Rescue Committee’s page on virtual resettlement for more information.
– WelcomeCorps Private Sponsorship– The US launched a private sponsorship program for refugees in early 2023, allowing Americans sponsor refugee families. In this model, a sponsor group provides the funding and services in lieu of a resettlement agency. In addition, WelcomeCorps has implemented more specific sponsorship programs including WelcomeCorps Naming, allowing sponsorship of specific refugee families. {and WelcomeCorps at Work -*program termination, Feb 2026 allowing employers to recruit qualified refugees from overseas.}
The health requirements for entering the United States are the same for refugees arriving through any of these pathways, as are the benefits and health services available to them once they arrive. This includes access to health insurance, primary care, and a refugee medical screening in the United States.
Local Updates
- Washington Migrant and Asylum Seeker Support Project: Earlier this year, the Washington state legislature approved $32 million dollars to assist asylum seekers living in the state. The Office of Refugee and Immigrant Assistance is using the bulk of these funds to start the Washington Migrant and Asylum Seeker Support Project (WA-MASS) which plans to use a hub-and-spoke model to create a statewide-network of services for asylum seekers. You can read more on this project via the Washington State Standard.
- Washington Apple Health Medicaid Expansion: Washington state’s Medicaid program, Apple Health, expanded medical insurance for undocumented immigrants this summer. Spaces quickly filled up and the enrolment limit has been met. However, undocumented immigrants can still apply for coverage in case additional spaces open up.
- 90 Days to Make a Life: Read the story of Nasima and Ahmad, Afghan refugees who recently resettled in Washington state, and the challenges of resettlement in this piece by KUOW.
Other Topics of Note
- Immigrant Misinformation: With the United States election around the corner, anti-immigrant rhetoric is again at a peak. Here is a roundup of recent articles regarding the health and social impact of this rhetoric on immigrant communities.
– Yang LH, Eger MA, Link BG. The Human Cost of Politicizing Immigration: Migration Stigma, US Politics, and Health. JAMA. 2024;332(8):619–620. doi:10.1001/jama.2024.11126. Discusses the mental health consequences of the dehumanization of immigrants by coining the social science concept of ‘migration stigma.’ The author has also recently published a book on the same topic: Migration Stigma: Understanding Prejudice, Discrimination and Exclusion.
– Krupenkin M, Hill S, Rothschild D. Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric and ICE Reporting Interest: Evidence from a Large-Scale Study of Web Search Data. British Journal of Political Science 2024;54(3):748–70. doi:10.1017/S0007123423000558. Study of the very real-world impacts of anti-immigrant rhetoric and its correlation with an increase in reporting to ICE.
– López-Hinojosa, I., Zhang, J., López-Hinojosa, K., Baig, A. A., Tung, E. L., & Martinez-Cardoso, A. (2024). “We have to lie low … that sort of poisons me more and more”: A qualitative study of violent political rhetoric and health implications for Spanish and Chinese speaking immigrants. Social Science & Medicine (1982), 341, 116504–116504. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2023.116504. Explores the downstream health impacts of violent anti-immigrant rhetoric on Spanish and Chinese speaking communities in Chicago.
– Misinformation About Immigrants in the 2024 Presidential Election, Kaiser Family Foundation, September 24, 2024. An in-depth look at current public perception of immigrants in the United States.
Anti-immigrant rhetoric can have very real physical and mental health consequences on immigrant communities. The International Rescue Committee’s Center for Adjustment, Resilience, and Recovery (CARRE) has published useful resources for providers serving immigrant clients in response to heightened anti-immigrant sentiment. Providers can utilize the Election Stress and Discriminatory Rhetoric resource which provides guidance for responding to client distress around these topics. CARRE has also published an informational handout about hate crimes with translated versions in several languages. Migrant Clinicians Network has also recently announced a three-part webinar series titled Words Matter: The Impact of Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric and Policies on Clinicians and Patients with the first webinar of the series occurring on October 17th.