New York, NY -UNS: NYC Health + Hospitals today announced the closure of the NYC Arrival Center and the Roosevelt Hotel humanitarian center and recognized the accomplishments of the public health system’s Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center (HERRC) program, which has served as a cornerstone of New York City’s historic response to the international asylum seeker humanitarian crisis. Since first opening its doors in May 2023 through the date of its closure, the Arrival Center provided unified intake, medical, social, and reconnection services to more than 155,000 unique individuals — approximately two thirds of the nearly 240,000 asylum seekers who have come to New York City since Spring 2022. Staff at the Arrival Center have assisted asylum seekers across more than 300,000 visits, providing care to individuals representing over 160 countries and speaking over 60 languages. Over the course of the HERRC program, more than 140,000 people, including over 40,000 children, have been provided temporary shelter and wraparound services at humanitarian centers managed by NYC Health + Hospitals. In addition, the HERRC Case Management program — working in close coordination with its Community Advisory Board (CAB) — provided nearly one million case management meetings to asylum seekers and helped over 90% of eligible adults apply for or receive work authorization.
“New York City has always been, and will always be, a city of immigrants, so it’s easy to forget, that just three years ago, New York City became the forefront of an international humanitarian crisis that eventually peaked at more 4,000 individuals arriving in our city weekly asking for shelter and support. At a moment when others stepped back, New York City stepped up, building a system that provided immediate support, providing over 200,000 life-saving vaccinations, temporary shelter for those in need, and schooling for thousands of children,” said Mayor Adams. “I’m proud that no family with children was forced to sleep on the streets, and that we built, in a moment of urgent need, a nation-leading Asylum Application Help Center that helped over 111,000 people apply for work authorization, TPS, and asylum. We’ve also managed this crisis and helped over 84 percent, or over 200,000 people, move out of our care and take the next steps in their journeys. Our response was a model for cities across the country dealing with the same challenges to use, and while the work continues, our Arrival Center at the Roosevelt Hotel will always stand as a symbol of the work of thousands of city workers, volunteers, faith leaders, and community-based organizations to respond to this historic crisis.”
“At NYC Health + Hospitals, we have always believed that health care is a human right — and at the Arrival Center and our humanitarian centers we put our mission into action for hundreds of thousands of people seeking safety and opportunity,” said NYC Health + Hospitals President and CEO Dr. Mitchell Katz. “What we built together is historic: a public health model rooted in compassion, dignity, and practical support that reached over 155,000 individuals during their most vulnerable moments. I am proud of our staff for rising to this extraordinary challenge with skill, tenacity, and humanity, and I am grateful to every city, community, and business partner who helped uplift those who arrived in our city with hope, resilience, and kindness.”
“When asylum seekers came to New York City — often exhausted, scared, and unsure of what lay ahead — they were met at the Arrival Center and our humanitarian centers on day one with care, respect, and the services they needed to pursue a better life,” said NYC Health + Hospitals Senior Vice President of Ambulatory Care and Population Health Dr. Ted Long. “This was never a faceless crisis. We recognize that each person who entered our city is a human in need of help and built a compassionate and effective model to meet their needs so they could support themselves. Thank you to every HERRC team member, city agency, community-based organization, and advocate who helped make that possible — you’ve made a life-changing difference for hundreds of thousands of people.”
“One of the most impactful decisions the city made throughout our humanitarian response was opening the Roosevelt Arrival Center,” said Mayor’s Office of Asylum Seeker Operations Executive Director Molly Schaeffer. “For thousands of people who came with little more than the clothes on their backs it served as a safe landing place and a launching pad for the next step on their journey; and for many, the Roosevelt is a symbol of New York City acting to serve for those in need. As this unique chapter in the city’s unprecedented role in a national emergency comes to a close, I can’t help but reflect on the commitment we have had, and continue to have, to serve those who come into our care. It will remain a testament to the resilience of our city, the compassion of our teams and community partners, and municipal government at its best.”
“Millions of future Americans will one day trace their family’s immigration story back to places like the Arrival Center at the Roosevelt Hotel and at Port Authority, sites where New York City met them with humanity, dignity, and hope” said Manuel Castro, Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs. “Being part of this once-in-a-generation response has been an honor. I couldn’t be prouder to have played a role in this historic effort over the past three years. I’m deeply grateful to all the public servants who stood with us in this extraordinary chapter of our city’s story.”
The Arrival Center’s waiting area in May 2024 when the facility was receiving approximately 2,800 new arrivals per week
New York City’s Arrival Center, based in the Roosevelt Hotel in Midtown Manhattan, opened its doors to newly arriving asylum seekers on May 19, 2023. Over the last two years, the facility’s staff registered and provided care to over 155,000 unique people from over 160 countries while operating without interruption 24 hours a day, every day of the year. In coordination with officials at NYC Emergency Management (NYCEM), the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), and Port Authority Bus Terminal (PABT), the Arrival Center received approximately 32,000 people on at least 800 chartered buses and seven planes sent to New York City. In September 2023, at the height of the influx of newly arriving asylum seekers to the facility, it received approximately 4,000 people per week. Since the beginning of June, the facility has received less than one hundred people per week.
The Arrival Center’s case management teams evaluated asylum seekers’ information in order to offer informed, impactful assistance
The Arrival Center served as the first point of contact for all newly arriving asylum seekers in New York City. At the Center, asylum seekers were met with a dignified welcome including food, water, bathrooms, luggage storage, and hygienic products, allowing adults and families with children to rest and get settled after what for many had been a long and difficult journey to New York City. The Arrival Center’s resource navigator teams evaluated asylum seekers’ information — including their legal documents, applications for asylum, work authorization, and temporary protected status, employment history, and education — in order to offer informed, impactful assistance.
To address asylum seekers’ healthcare needs, the Center provided immediate on-site medical screenings, connections to urgent care, behavioral health screenings and care, and vaccinations. First, clinicians performed screenings for communicable diseases, including active tuberculosis and COVID-19, and for rashes symptomatic of measles and varicella (chickenpox). Then, clinicians provided urgent care for common medical conditions and dispensed medications and prescriptions as needed. Staff also regularly provided initial care for pregnant asylum seekers and chronic disease management, and referred asylum seekers to NYC Health + Hospitals’ facilities to receive further care.
Medical teams at the Arrival Center provided immediate medical screenings, urgent care, behavioral health screenings and care, and vaccinations
Following the medical screening, all asylum seekers ages 12 and above, including many who experienced trauma during their journey, were screened for depression. If someone showed symptoms of depression on the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) screening, they were given a warm handoff to social workers onsite who performed an evaluation and made referrals to mental health clinics as needed. Over the course of the Center’s operations, staff administered over 180,000 screenings for depression.
Finally, clinicians offered vaccinations for measles-mumps-rubella (MMR), varicella, and COVID-19. To date, NYC Health + Hospitals’ staff at the Arrival Center, its humanitarian centers, and hospital facilities have administered over 200,000 vaccinations. The majority of those vaccinations were given to children, many of whom were applying for eligibility to New York City public schools.
After asylum seekers completed medical intake, resource navigators met with them to discuss their journey, connect them to resources, such as health care, legal support, child care, and discuss reconnections to their desired destinations. This initial conversation at the Arrival Center informed subsequent case management meetings provided at asylum seekers’ shelter placements, including NYC Health + Hospitals’ humanitarian centers. During these meetings, case managers met with guests every two weeks to gauge where new arrivals were in their immigration journey, identified their barriers to leaving the city shelter system, and created tailored service plans for guests to achieve self-sufficiency and exit the city’s shelter system.
