Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA), one of the United States members of Caritas Internationalis, works through its 1,735 diocesan and local agencies to reduce poverty, support families and empower communities and to advocate among federal policymakers and the media on poverty reduction. It also provides networking opportunities for its members, training and technical assistance, financial support and leadership in the development of assistance programmes.

One of the main CCUSA programmes is the Campaign to Reduce Poverty in America – reduce poverty by 50 percent by 2020, combat racial injustice and advocate for justice for immigrants.

The CCUSA Disaster Response Office coordinates response to disasters such as hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico, tornadoes and flooding. It helps provide food, shelter, direct financial assistance, counselling and support. It also provides longer-term funding in the form of grants for reconstruction and rehabilitation.

Domestic Programmes

In the United States, Catholic Charities network supports programmes for:

• Basic needs: clothing, utilities, medication, emergency financial assistance;
• Community services: social support, education, neighbourhoods, at-risk populations, health;
• Strengthening families: counselling and mental health, immigration, addiction, refugees, pregnancy, adoption;
• Food services: food banks, soup kitchens, communal dining, home-delivered meals;
• Housing: temporary shelter, supervised living, permanent housing, transitional housing;
• Disaster response: hurricanes, tornadoes, floods.