Title 42 ends: HHS ‘saddened’ after child immigrant died in custody at Florida facility
Kaelan Deese
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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Friday that it is “deeply saddened” after a child immigrant died at a government-sponsored shelter in Florida.
HHS released a brief statement with few details on Friday stating the agency is “in touch” with the young immigrant’s family and that the agency’s Office of Refugee Resettlement and its Division of Health for Unaccompanied Children is “reviewing all the clinical details of this case.”
“The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is deeply saddened by this tragic loss and our heart goes out to the family,” according to a statement from the agency sent to multiple reporters.
HHS added that for “privacy and safety reasons,” ORR could not relay further information on the individual who died. The cause or time of death is not immediately clear.
“ORR requires facilities in Florida to meet state licensing standards. ORR conducts its own monitoring and evaluation of all ORR facilities to ensure the safety and well-being of all children in our care,” the statement added.
The announcement comes just hours after the Title 42 policy, that in total brought about 2.8 million expulsions of illegal immigrants from the U.S. on the basis of a health crisis, came to an end.
The policy was challenged in court by Republican-led states who sought to keep the policy and worked its way up to the nation’s highest court, which previously slated the dispute for oral arguments on March 1. But those Supreme Court arguments were canceled in mid-February because the case became moot after the Biden administration announced plans for the pandemic health emergency to end on May 11.
Despite the already canceled arguments, the Biden administration’s Justice Department on Friday sent a letter to the justices declaring the “private respondents’ challenge is now moot.”
“As the government’s brief explained, the mootness of the underlying dispute also moots petitioners’ request to intervene on appeal,” according to a letter signed by Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar.
In FY 2022, at least 853 immigrants died while attempting to cross into the country, setting record highs for border crossing fatalities.
Title 42’s end will make Title 8 the primary enforcement policy to process and handle immigrants arriving at the southern border.
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While Title 8 dictates expedited deportation protocols, it typically allows more time for immigrants to make their asylum claims than what was afforded under Title 42.
The Washington Examiner made multiple attempts to contact HHS for more information on the deceased migrant.