PHOENIX — During ABC15's 48 Hours on the Border series in March 2024, we showed you the work the Somerton-based nonprofit Regional Center for Border Health was doing with the transition center they had set up to help migrants who were seeking asylum and had just been processed by the Border Patrol.
With border crossings at historic lows, the transition center is no longer needed, but the RCBH's community initiatives continue — and so does their quest to get reimbursed from the federal government.
RCBH says FEMA owes them close to $3 million for helping nearly a quarter million migrants over a four-year period.
ABC15 had seen the transition center up close during two different times: First, during the end of Title 42 in May 2023, and then to follow up in March 2024.
"Thinking back, I feel so proud of that, to provide that humanitarian effort and support our government," says Amanda Aguirre, the President and CEO of the Regional Center for Border Health.
It's support, Aguirre says, included feeding asylum-seekers, helping them coordinate travel, health screenings, and most importantly, preventing street releases.
"She does an amazing job in helping the community here because it's important for her and for our community to be able to transition people for their reporting in the immigration process," said Sean McGoffin, Chief Patrol Agent for the Tucson Sector, who at the time was overseeing the Yuma Sector.
In total, Aguirre says the RCBH assisted more than 237,000 migrants over a four-year period, which is more than the entire population of Yuma County.
"The number of people was just enormous," says Aguirre. "But it's also a human factor, the human faces we see...every one of the individuals was taken care of, whether they needed medical care or assistance, the language barrier, and all the things that come with serving 140 countries."
And it's help, Aguirre says, she still has not been fully reimbursed for.
"FEMA still owes us approximately $3 million."
ABC15's Nick Ciletti reached out to FEMA directly for answers, but did not hear back.
In February, President Donald Trump did sign an Executive Order that the White House called, "Ending Taxpayer Subsidization of Open Borders," citing a 1996 law, which the White House says bans undocumented people from getting most types of public benefits, saying quote, "Over the last four years, in particular the prior administration, repeatedly undercut the goals of that law."
"The order went on to say one of the goals was to prevent taxpayer resources from acting as a magnet and fueling illegal immigration," but Aguirre says that's not what was happening at all.
"We didn’t process anyone just walking in out of the streets," explains Aguirre. "This was in direct support of the Border Patrol and Homeland Security."
Now that it's been six months since their work with DHS ended, ABC15 asked if Aguirre is worried she won't be reimbursed at all, amounting to a nearly $3 million loss for this nonprofit, whose goal is to provide health support to underserved communities across the state.
"There is that fear in the back of my mind, right? We are hoping the process and legal process work, and FEMA and Congress will move forward with paying us, all the nonprofits in the same situation, where we did the legitimate work…for protecting our country and communities. That’s the bottom line."
ABC15 will also continue to follow up with FEMA as well as our elected leaders to see what can be done about reimbursing the Regional Center for Border Health.
