TEXAS – The Biden administration plans to reopen a holding center for migrant children detained at the country’s Southwest border, the administration confirmed in a statement to Fox News on Wednesday.
The Department of Health and Human Services plans to reactivate a temporary Influx Care Facility in Carrizo Springs, Texas, for the potential care of unaccompanied alien children as necessary, the agency said.
The facility will initially be able to accommodate about 700 migrant children, though capacity can be added if necessary. The government expects to begin housing unaccompanied alien children who have been cleared of COVID-19 quarantine in Carrizo Springs within 15 days. It will not house children under the age of 13.
The site has been unoccupied since July 2019.
The DHS noted that Influx Care Facilities are one way to move migrant children out of U.S. Customs and Border Protection facilities and see that they have access to services ranging from medical care to education.
Once referred to the Office of Refugee Resettlement, the government works to assign children to the appropriate care provider facilities and release children to suitable sponsors as their immigration cases proceed.
News about the overflow facility was first reported by CNN on Wednesday.
The holding center is opening as apprehensions at the border climb amid hopes of a loosening of restrictions under the current administration, as previously reported by Fox News.
By law, the government is required to provide care for unaccompanied alien children who have no immigration status in the U.S. no legal guardian in the U.S., and who are not yet 18 years old.
