In case you missed HHS’ Administration for Children and Families’ (ACF) recent webinar on the Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) Program in partnership with Treasury and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, we wanted to share the recording and attached presentation. In addition, below are resources shared during the webinar that may be helpful to you and the populations we serve. 

 Sites & Resources from Treasury: 

• Find rental assistance: Treasury has collected websites associated with our grantees’ Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) programs to help tenants and landlords find rental

Switchboard recently published two blog posts aimed at service providers supporting clients and recent arrivals from Afghanistan. A Round-Up of Resources for Serving Afghan Evacuees shares federal policies, cultural orientation resources, and economic empowerment and digital inclusion resources. It includes a focus on resources available in Dari and Pashto. Supporting Clients and Staff Affected by the Crisis in Afghanistan provides tips that may be helpful to program staff and leaders as they seek to care for clients and staff affected by the situation in Afghanistan.

As you know, in the first week of August, ORR published ORR PL 21-07, Amendment to ORR Policy Letter 16-01: Additional Form of Documentation for Iraqi and Afghan Special Immigrants. In addition, in response to concerns about Afghans with SI/SQ parole (per section 602(B)(1) AAPA / Section 1509(a) NDAA 2006) not being able to access mainstream benefits, ORR took two main steps.

1. Issued ORR DCL 21-16, Clarification Related to Afghan SQ/SI Parolees Eligibility for RCA/RMA, as a reminder that if these Afghan parolees are found ineligible for TANF or Medicaid, they should be screened for RCA and

Attached please find Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) 21-16 Clarification Related to Afghan SQ/SI Parolees Eligibility for RCA/RMA. It will be posted to the DCL page of the ORR web site in the near future (https://www.acf.hhs.gov/orr/policy-guidance/dear-colleague-letter). Please distribute as appropriate to your networks as these individuals have begun arriving to their resettlement locations within the United States. Contact ORR’s Refugee Policy Unit (RefugeePolicy@acf.hhs.gov) with any questions.

Attached please find FAQs and related resources for Afghan SIVs being processed out of Fort Lee.

By Eugene F. Augusterfer and Richard F. Mollica

First, let us start by defining blended or hybrid telehealth. As the name suggests, blended or hybrid telehealth is a combination of traditional face-to-face clinical encounters blended with virtual or telehealth encounters. When possible, it is best to have an initial meeting face-to-face, then move to telehealth meetings. Studies and experience have demonstrated that while using telehealth, occasional face-to-face meetings mixed with telehealth meetings is more efficacious.

This document is a resource for current literature, April - June, on the topic of the mental health status of and treatments for torture survivors, war trauma survivors, refugees, and asylum seekers. This also includes research in the area of social work that relates directly to the psychological well-being of these populations. The compilation below includes peer reviewed journal article citations in these areas and links to the publicly available abstracts and full text versions of these articles. It does not currently include articles on policy and advocacy.

Here is a recent special report in Emergency Medicine News, “Torture Survivors: Hidden in Plain Sight,” by Gina Shaw, which cites many of our friends from Libertas Center for Human Rights, like Dr. Lars Beattie and Dr. Rajeev Bais (both founders of Libertas), and Dr. Dinali Fernando, as well as Dr. Allen Keller (founder of Bellevue Program for Survivors of Torture).