STATEMENT: Hurricane Recovery Program Case Management

Recently, inaccuracies regarding the American Red Cross Hurricane Recovery Program (HRP) have surfaced through nationally syndicated radio programs and several online postings, specifically, that the Red Cross has $20,000 grants available for survivors of the 2005 hurricanes.

There are no grants available to hurricane survivors from the Red Cross. The Red Cross did give out emergency financial assistance right after the hurricanes, but there are no funds available directly to survivors now.

The $20,000 figure that has been circulating is in association with the absolute limit per client through case management assessment. The only way to access the Red Cross funds is through detailed needs assessment with a trained disaster case worker. The needs of survivors far outweigh the resources of the American Red Cross and the entire nonprofit sector. Not all clients who are in case management will receive Means to Recovery benefits. For any needs that are identified and approved, payment is made directly to the stores or other vendor.

More than 53,000 families have received recovery planning help from disaster case managers across the country to date from the American Red Cross and many other partner agencies.

If you are interested in the case management process, due to the high number of individuals who have come to the system and the limited resources for the program, you may have to be put on a waiting list. For more information on getting on a wait list, call 1-866-GET-INFO. Currently, many of our Red Cross Hurricane Recovery Program Chapters along with our partner agencies have reached caseload capacity.

For chapter or other agencies, contact Mark Smith at 202-303-4063.

For media inquires only, please contact Jeanne Ellinport at 240-643-0770. Do NOT refer clients, chapters, case managers, or other agencies to this number.

The American Red Cross helps people prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies. Last year, almost a million volunteers and 35,000 employees helped victims of almost 75,000 disasters; taught lifesaving skills to millions; and helped U.S. service members separated from their families stay connected. Almost 4 million people gave blood through the Red Cross, the largest supplier of blood and blood products in the United States. The American Red Cross is part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. An average of 91 cents of every dollar the Red Cross spends is invested in humanitarian services and programs. The Red Cross is not a government agency; it relies on donations of time, money, and blood to do its work.