Immigration Detention Policy Changes Bring New Service Opportunities

Policy shifts in the detention of illegal immigrants could offer new opportunities for behavioral health and social service provider organizations. I read with interest the October 6 report by Dr. Dora Schriro, former Special Advisor on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Detention & Removal, "Immigration Detention Overview and Recommendations," where she announced new recommendations to revamp the currently fragmented, insufficient immigrant detention system. The basis of her recommendations is that using jails and prisons is costly—and often unnecessary—for detention, and that specialized privately-run facilities might be the answer.

In total, the U.S. government spends $2.4 billion annually on its current ‘detention and removal' system. Even a diversion of a small part of that budget for community-based and situation-appropriate settings could be a big opportunity in the field. Some of the specific recommendations that caught my eye include:

• Non-governmental organizations and non-profit agencies should be invited to assist eligible individuals in special populations, as well as the general population, to establish community ties and develop viable release plans to qualify for placement in ATD programs
• ICE should develop specialized caseloads of aliens including those chronically, medically, or mentally ill or have been detained a significant length of time to improve case management and expedite removal, release, or relief.
• More ADA-accessible facilities should be available to house detainees with special needs. Specialists to diagnose and treat each of these populations, specialized case management, and prescription reviews are all needed.
• Aliens with mental illness would benefit from improved staffing, appropriate housing, access to step down services, and specialized case management.
  
  You can read more on this in "U.S. Moving Away From Correctional Model for Immigrant Detention; New Ideas Include Expanded Use of Hotels & Nursing Homes." As the plans for restructuring the immigration detention system become more concrete, look to our team at OPEN MINDS for continued coverage of new opportunities.