Biden Administration to Expedite Release of Migrant Children by Flying, Bussing to U.S. Homes
A group of 85 asylum seekers, including families with children with serious health problems, departs from the Reception and Identification Centers of the Greek islands for Germany on July 24, 2020 in Athens, Greece Milos Bicanski

After receiving backlash from the "kids in cages" issue, the Biden administration is now working to expedite the migrant children's release to their relatives in the United States.

Breitbart News reported that the Biden administration would be flying and bussing more migrant children, mostly from Central America, to homes through the U.S.

In an interview with Breitbart News, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said its Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) had been authorized to pay transport fees for unaccompanied children, including airline tickets and escort transport, in order to facilitate the release of migrant children to approved sponsors.

Many people have expressed dismay to the current administration for reopening some facilities for migrant children that had been closed since 2019.

According to Al Jazeera, White House Secretary Jen Psaki has denied that the Biden administration is placing the "kids in cages," a criticism that the previous administration has also faced.

Planes as Transport for Migrant Children

According to Breitbart News, the ORR care providers are also permitted to use the program funds to purchase airline tickets if the sponsor could not pay the fees associated with commercial airfare to prevent delays in releasing the migrant children.

Citing the ORR, USA Today reported that the number of unaccompanied migrant children arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border is rising. The ORR is the agency tasked with taking care of the migrant children once they crossed the border.

According to agency statistics released early this month, the number of migrant children referred to ORR climbed from 1,530 in October to 3,364 in December - a 120 percent jump.

Breitbart News reported that Rosemary Jenks, policy director from the Numbers USA, said the move to expedite the release of migrant children is not about the backlog. Jenks noted that Biden's policies create a border surge.

"They're getting exactly what we all knew they were going to get, which is more people coming across, including more unaccompanied children. So now they're trying to figure out what to do with them," Jenks said in the report.

"Because you know AOC [Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, (D-NY)] and others are so unhappy with their 'kids in containers' policy that they've got to fly them away from the border so nobody notices them," she added.

Unaccompanied Migrant Children Are Flooding the U.S.-Mexico Border

USA Today reported that the ORR usually has 13,764 beds for minors, but because of COVID-19 social distancing restrictions, only 7,971 are currently available. Of those, the agency noted that about 5,200 are occupied, leaving only 2,700 beds open or available.

Lisa Koop, associate director of legal services at the National Immigrant Justice Center, said the Biden administration must live up to their commitment to the fair and humane treatment of immigrants at the border.

Citing a Washington Times report, Breitbart News said the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) scrambles to find bigger airplanes and more ground transport capacity for soaring numbers of illegal immigrants.

ICE has reportedly talked to a Texas company that runs "Man Camps" to see whether it would rent bed space for the illegal immigrants.

Biden's officials have been expressing their desire to refocus the border agencies into helping extract more migrants from Central America for the country's economy.

WATCH: Hear the Words of Detained Migrant Children from The New York Times