Refugee Health

USCRI’s Refugee Health Services was established in 2017 to support and develop health and wellness initiatives for refugees.

Promoting health is a crucial part of resettlement.  In order to succeed at school or work, you need to take care of your health. Parents need to take care of their health so they can help their children succeed. USCRI helps refugees and other eligible groups lay a solid foundation for a healthy start through its medical screening program.

Through the medical screening program, refugees and other eligible groups in Texas and Missouri get a comprehensive medical exam soon after arriving to the U.S. or when they are eligible. Some people refer to the medical exam as the “domestic health assessment”. During the medical screening a doctor may ask about the patient’s nutritional well-being, reproductive health, mental health, dental health, hearing and vision. The doctor may also order some lab work to test for certain health conditions. When it is needed, the doctor may give the patient medication for treatment.

USCRI partners with local resettlement agencies, federally qualified health centers, local health departments or district hospitals, laboratories, and a pharmaceutical wholesaler to coordinate the medical screening program. Local resettlement agencies refer patients to the screening program clinics to schedule appointments.

USCRI administers the Refugee Medical Assistance (RMA) and Refugee Medical Screening (RMS) funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Refugee Resettlement Refugee (ORR).

What is RMA?

RMA provides up to eight months of health care coverage to certain non-citizens who are considered refugees under the Immigration and Naturalization Act.

What is RMS?

RMS is a health assessment program. The purpose of RMS is to:

• ensure follow-up with medical issues identified in an overseas medical screening;
• identify persons with communicable diseases of potential public health importance;
• enable a refugee to successfully resettle by identifying personal health conditions that, if left unidentified, could adversely impact his or her ability to resettle; and
• refer refugees to primary care providers for ongoing health care. USCRI administers the RMS Program in Missouri and Texas.

What is the Unaccompanied Refugee Minors (URM) and Special Immigrant Juveniles (SIJS) Program?

In addition, USCRI administers the Unaccompanied Refugee Minors (URM) and Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJS) programs in two states. The URM program ensures that eligible unaccompanied minors receive health services, while the SIJS program secures appropriate care for juveniles with a SIJS status. USCRI administers the URM Program in Texas and the SIJS Program in Michigan.

What is the Texas Refugee Wellness Program?

RHS also operates the Texas Refugee Wellness Program. This program carries out programs and activities that address refugee risk factors, build capacity for behavioral health providers working with refugees, and strengthen mental health partnerships in Texas communities where refugees resettle.

What is the Mental Health Awareness Training?

In 2018, RHS initiated the Mental Health Awareness Training Program. Through this program, USCRI Texas works with local immigrant and refugee populations to raise awareness about mental health and available resources.

What is the Behavioral Health Support Program?

USCRI’s Refugee Health Services has developed a dynamic and multi-tiered behavioral health support services program aimed to mitigate resettlement challenges by expanding access to culturally and linguistically tailored, trauma-informed behavioral health services for resettled Afghan arrivals across the nation.