Latest Moves
Lloyd Left HHS In May 2019. “Scott Lloyd, whose nearly two-year tenure leading the Department of Health and Human Services refugee office sparked lawsuits and congressional inquiries, will leave the Trump administration next week, HHS announced Wednesday.” [Politico, 5/29/19]
Lloyd Ran For Seat On Front Royal, VA Town Council In 2020. [Northern Virginia Daily, 1/3/20]
Lloyd Was Elected As Third-Place Finisher In Election For Three Seats. [Northern Virginia Daily, 11/4/20]
Since Leaving Administration, Lloyd Promoted Debut Novel About A College Student Who Regrets An Abortion, Focused On His Band “Day Of Salvation.” “Since leaving the administration, Lloyd has promoted his debut novel, about a college student who regrets an abortion. (Lloyd is a devout Catholic and a longtime anti-abortion crusader.) He’s also focused on his band “Day of Salvation.” (The band’s website doesn’t describe itself as Christian rock, but Jesus comes up in their lyrics.) He lives with his wife and seven children in suburban Virginia.” [VICE, 7/18/20]
Recent News
Headline: Buzzfeed News: “Senior Officials Central To The Trump Administration’s Family Separations Failed To Act On Repeated Warnings From Its Staff, According To A New Report.” [Buzzfeed News, 3/5/20]
Buzzfeed News: March 2020 HHS Inspector General Report Found Lloyd “Disregarded Specific, Repeated Warnings” About Implementing Family Separation Policy. “Investigators found that for months before the Trump administration’s zero tolerance policy was announced, Maggie Wynne, counselor to the secretary for Human Services Policy, Steven Wagner, the acting assistant secretary for Administration for Children and Families (ACF), and Scott Lloyd, director of ORR, disregarded specific, repeated warnings from staff regarding the possibility that DHS would implement family separation. They no longer hold these positions.” [Buzzfeed News, 3/5/20]
IG Report Found “No Evidence That [Wynne, Wagner Or Lloyd] Took Action To Protect Children’s Interests In Response To The Information And Concerns Raised By ORR Staff.” “Employees within ORR, which manages the unaccompanied minors program, believed they didn’t have enough bed space to accommodate a large increase in separated children and were also concerned about the trauma it would cause. “OIG found no evidence that these three senior HHS officials took action to protect children’s interests in response to the information and concerns raised by ORR staff,” the report said.” [Buzzfeed News, 3/5/20]
Deputy Director Of ORR Warned Lloyd That There Was A Shortage Of Beds For Infants. “In November 2017, ORR’s then–deputy director for children’s programs, alerted Lloyd about the challenges with infants separated from family, specifically a shortage of beds for babies. In general, ORR staff were concerned that systematic family separations would overload their program.”
July 2020: Lloyd Defended His Work As Director Of ORR During Family Separations – “I Did Everything That I Could, According To What Was Required Of Me.” “Ask the man once tasked with caring for children separated from their families at the U.S. southern border if his agency improved people’s lives, and he won’t hesitate to answer. “Yes,” Scott Lloyd, the former head of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, told VICE News in his first major on-camera interview since the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance policy” split up thousands of families. “I did everything that I could, according to what was required of me,” Lloyd later said of his time at the office.” [VICE, 7/18/20]
Headline: Politico: “Trump appointee under scrutiny for handling of child separations.” [POLITICO, 2/26/19]
Lloyd Led HHS Refugee Office As It Took Custody Of Separated Children, Was Removed From Position During Uproar. “Scott Lloyd, who led the HHS refugee office last year as it took custody of thousands of migrant kids separated from their families, will face a grilling on Tuesday before the House Judiciary Committee — one of four panels escalating probes into family separations. The hearing with Lloyd, a top target of the House Democrats’ sprawling investigation, could foreshadow his possible departure from the Trump administration amid dwindling internal support… Lloyd’s testimony, which Democrats had sought for months, comes at a tenuous time for him. HHS Secretary Alex Azar and other officials lost faith in Lloyd last summer as his office struggled to reunite migrant families, and Lloyd was effectively removed from leading the refugee office in the midst of the crisis. In November, he was formally transferred to the HHS office for faith initiatives.” [POLITICO, 2/26/19]
Lloyd “Dissuaded Staff Efforts To Track Separated Families.” “Lloyd, who didn’t have previous experience overseeing care for migrants, took steps that health department officials said slowed reunification efforts. Lloyd dissuaded staff efforts to track separated families, three individuals with knowledge told POLITICO. After a federal judge in June ordered that the families be promptly reunified, Lloyd struggled to direct the effort, personally aggravating Azar and leading to Lloyd’s effective removal for the duration of the crisis, five individuals with knowledge said.” [POLITICO, 2/26/19]
Headline: Huffington Post: “A Single Trump Appointee Was Responsible For Keeping Hundreds Of Kids Locked Up Longer.” [Huffington Post, 7/27/18]
Huffington Post: Lloyd Was “Single Trump Appointee… Responsible For Keeping Hundreds Of Kids Locked Up Longer.” “A Trump appointee’s decision to personally review requests to release migrant children from jail-like ‘secure facilities’ created a bureaucratic bottleneck that dramatically increased the amount of time kids spent locked up. Office of Refugee Resettlement chief E. Scott Lloyd ― who first attracted national interest when a federal court slapped down his attempt to ban a teenage migrant who’d been raped from obtaining an abortion ― told subordinates last year that he’d have to personally sign off before any kids could be released from ORR’s secure facilities. As a result, hundreds of kids spent extra time in the jail-like facilities, which have been associated with far more allegations of abuse and mistreatment than the shelters and homestays that hold most of the children in ORR custody.” [Huffington Post, 7/27/18]
Lloyd Introduced Policy At ORR To Consult With ICE On Transferring Children In Its Care To Secure Detention Facilities If They Self-Reported Gang Affiliations, Including In Therapy Sessions. ““This therapy has historically been carried out with the mission of supporting children during a stressful time. In 2017, ORR began modifying that mission. Shortly after being appointed by Trump, then-ORR head Scott Lloyd introduced a policy of moving minors who self-disclosed gang ties to secure detention, and, as he said in congressional testimony, “working to enhance our day-to-day consultations” with ICE. Explaining further in a recent interview, Lloyd said he acted in response to concerns about criminals coming across the border. “There definitely were policy changes,” he said. “I could see there being no downside to just sharing information.”” [Washington Post, 2/15/20]
Professional Organizations Including American Psychological Association Stated Practice Was Not Ethically Defensible. “But professional organizations including the American Psychological Association, National Social Workers Association, and American Counseling Association say that while it may be legal to share these notes, it’s not ethically defensible. “The idea of going to therapy is not trying to solicit confessions for other uses. Even if your patient is being accused of a crime, you don’t just share your notes,” said Lynn Bufka, a senior director for the American Psychological Association.” [Washington Post, 2/15/20]
