California is preparing for over 5,255 Afghan refugees.
Officials say they're among an initial wave of 37,000 evacuees coming to the U.S. A number of them have specifically requested refuge in states where they already have family connections. Many of those displaced previously worked for the U.S. government or military in Afghanistan. California will take the highest number of people at 5,255 evacuees, and Texas will take 4,481,according to State Department data for the Afghan Placement and Assistance program shared with the AP. The news follows a few hiccups in the U.S. effort to evacuate remaining evacuees from Afghanistan. Last week, flights carrying Afghan refugees were temporarily halted after four cases of measles were confirmed among Afghans who arrived in the U.S.
Additionally, Afghan refugees are slated to receive $1,225 from the U.S. government to help with expenses but are currently unable to receive food stamps, Medicaid and other traditional refugee services, according to the AP.