Thousands more migrant kids separated from families than previously reported

The Trump administration separated “thousands more” migrant children from their families at the border than previously reported — and it’s not known how many of them have been reunited, according to a report from the inspector general’s office at HHS. The HHS refugee office was responsible for the children’s care. The report found a spike in children separated from their families in summer 2017, long before the Trump administration announced its "zero tolerance" policy. A 2018 court order led to the reunification of most families separated under that policy. But the report found children that should have been reunited under the court order were still being identified months later, and the status of those separated before the policy isn’t clear. "There is even less visibility for separated children who fall outside the court case,” the report found.