Today, on World Refugee Day, we celebrate the many valuable contributions that refugees provide to our nation. We recognize the extraordinary challenges that refugees around the world continue to endure and pay tribute to their courage and resilience. And we thank countless individuals and communities across our country who have shown compassion and made a difference in the lives of refugees.

More than 108 million people around the world have been forced to flee their homes because of persecution, conflict, violence, or human rights violations. Among them are nearly 35 million who may never be able to return to their homes. Many of them are children.

The United States remains a safe harbor for some of the most vulnerable people in the world. We have welcomed individuals and families from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Colombia, Syria, Cuba, Haiti, Afghanistan, Ukraine, and many other countries. We proudly offer safety to members of the LGBTQI+ community, and persons with disabilities, who are made unwelcome in their home countries. And we support global humanitarian efforts focused on refugees far beyond our shores.

The Biden-Harris Administration will continue to do everything in our power to provide refugees with opportunities to resume their lives and education, and receive other critical services including health care and housing support. Through our Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), HHS proudly supports refugees and other eligible populations through the Refugee Mental Health Initiative within the Refugee Health Promotion Program and the Refugee School Impact Program for families and children.

As the scale of this anguish and hardship continues to grow; the need for the world to respond is greater than ever, and the commitment by the United States, and the Department of Health and Human Services, grows ever stronger.