ACF Region 6 Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response

Welcome

After the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), as a division of the Department of Health and Human Services, was charged with the responsibility for leading Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response activities within the Department.  Working with our Federal, State, Local, Tribal and Non-Governmental Organization partners (including grantees and government contractors) we work to ensure that the human services needs of impacted populations in a disaster are coordinated and addressed through a robust, comprehensive and integrated system delivering Federal and State assistance in a simple and seamless manner.

The Role of ACF in Emergency Preparedness and Response

The Emergency Support Function-6 Annex in the National Response Framework defines Human Services as: Includes the implementation of disaster assistance programs to help disaster victims recover their non-housing losses, including programs to replace destroyed personal property, and help to obtain disaster loans, food stamps, crisis counseling, disaster unemployment, disaster legal services, support and services for special needs populations, and other Federal and State benefits.

HHS is a support agency to ESF-6. HHS has traditionally had responsibility for ESF-8, Public Health & Medical Services, and now is expanding its support to ESF-6. These efforts include, but are not limited to:

• Technical Assistance on Federal Rules: Provide technical assistance to States, Tribes, and local governments on Federal human services programs and potential waivers or flexibilities that HHS can provide during a disaster to expedite benefits.
• Continuity of Benefits for Clients: Work with States, Tribes, and other entities to ensure continuity of services to current human services clients, such as TANF, Medicaid, Meals on Wheels, etc.
• Assist States with New Enrollees: Work with States, Tribes, and other entities who are hosting relocated populations or evacuees with human services needs.
• Special Needs Populations: Work with States, Tribes, FEMA, the American Red Cross and other voluntary agencies and entities to address special needs populations in shelters or other displaced persons. This may include Shelter Assessment Teams who visit shelters and assist with immediate needs of residents.
• Subject Matter Expert Teams: Provide human services subject matter expert and technical assistance teams who can be deployed to support States, Tribes, and other entities.
• Human Services Partnerships: Build relationships with States, Tribes, grantees, local governments, Voluntary Agencies Active in Disasters (VOADS) and Voluntary Agency Groups (VOLAGs ) to address human services preparedness and response.
• Assistance in Planning & Preparedness: ACF regional staff can provide technical assistance and support to tribal, state, and local governments and other organizations in their preparedness planning efforts.

Human Service Professionals

Sign-up For the Region 6 Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response Listserv
(Include your contact information in the body of the email)

Resources

• Region 6 State Emergency Management Agencies
• Region 6 State Human Services Agencies
• Region 6 State Human Services Resources and Programs
• ACF Emergency Preparedness Information
• Federal Health and Human Services Agencies Emergency Preparedness Information
• Resources for Children and Disasters
• Resources for Native Americans
• Resources for the Hearing Impaired
• Resources for the Visually Impaired
• Resources for Older Americans
• Resources for Disabled Individuals
• Resources for Families