The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under the Biden administration lost contact with nearly half of the unaccompanied migrant children released to sponsors in the United States.
During the first two years of President Joe Biden’s term, HHS, led by then-Secretary Xavier Becerra, transferred over 235,000 unaccompanied alien children (UACs) to adult sponsors across the nation, only to lose track of a staggering 112,872 of them within 30 days, leaving their safety and location a complete mystery.
This isn’t just a paperwork glitch; it’s a policy failure that raises serious questions about the welfare of vulnerable minors caught in a system prioritizing haste over accountability.
Breitbart reported that according to data unearthed by the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) through a Freedom of Information Act request, roughly 48% of these children slipped through the cracks after being handed over to sponsors between early 2021 and late 2023.
That’s almost half of the kids—tens of thousands of young lives—whose whereabouts and well-being couldn’t be confirmed by the very agency tasked with protecting them.
One has to wonder if HHS thought “out of sight, out of mind” was an acceptable child welfare strategy, especially when dealing with some of the most at-risk individuals in our immigration system.
Adding fuel to the fire, a report from Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, a Republican from Iowa, dropped a bombshell: over 11,000 of these children were placed in homes with adults who weren’t their parents or relatives and hadn’t even undergone basic fingerprint or background checks.
Most sponsors weren’t biologically related to the children at all, yet HHS seemed content to play fast and loose with vetting protocols, leaving one to ponder if speed trumped safety in their playbook.
It’s hard not to see this as a glaring oversight, especially when the potential for exploitation or harm looms large over unverified placements.
Current HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. didn’t mince words when addressing the mess left behind by his predecessor’s policies. “My predecessor was deliberately employing a policy of speed over safety so they waived all of the identification requirements for sponsors,” Kennedy charged.
He went on to highlight the absurdity of the process: “Sponsors were not required to show valid identification; they were never fingerprinted, so we don’t know if there’s a criminal record.”
Without even basic checks like DNA testing to confirm familial ties, Kennedy’s critique paints a picture of a system ripe for abuse, where claims of kinship were taken at face value with little scrutiny.
Let’s be clear: this isn’t about pointing fingers for political sport; it’s about ensuring the safety of children who arrive at our borders, often fleeing unimaginable hardship.
While progressive policies may aim for compassion, the execution here seems to have veered into recklessness, leaving conservatives and moderates alike questioning whether ideological goals overshadowed practical safeguards.
The data speaks for itself—HHS’s failure to follow up after releasing these minors isn’t just a bureaucratic misstep; it’s a betrayal of trust that could have lifelong consequences for thousands of young souls.