"In procurement documents quietly published last month, Immigration and Customs revealed that the Veterans Affairs administration abruptly cut off its access to vaccines that the agency has historically provided to the people it detains. It was one of a series of medical support services that were suddenly halted, and comes amid long-standing and growing concerns about the health care provided at ICE facilities."
"ICE subsequently pursued an "emergency" procurement to access vaccines in another way, according to the contracting documents released by the government. The Department of Homeland Security, in which ICE is housed, claims there was no gap in the vaccine service provided by the agency. Still, the document is a small window into the state of ICE operations as the agency continues to ramp up immigration enforcement efforts."
"ICE had for decades secured what calls "seasonal and routine" vaccines from the VA Financial Services Center, which provides support to both the veterans agency and other federal departments. Earlier government documents, previously reported by Popular Information, show that the VA suddenly cut off services for the ICE Health Corps back in October, which created subsequent issues for both medical claims processing and the pharmacy benefits management for people detained at ICE facilities."
ICE lost longstanding VA vaccine support when the Veterans Affairs Financial Services Center abruptly cut off access, affecting seasonal and routine vaccines historically obtained for detainees. The cutoff previously disrupted ICE Health Corps services in October, creating problems with medical claims processing and pharmacy benefits management. ICE pursued an emergency procurement to obtain vaccines through other channels while the Department of Homeland Security asserts no gap in service. ICE has not specified which vaccines are provided and released limited data; the agency did distribute tens of thousands of COVID-19 doses during the pandemic. Serious concerns persist about the quality and extent of health care in ICE facilities.
Read at Fast Company
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