WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has confirmed that it is providing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) access to the personal information of approximately 79 million Medicaid recipients, a move aimed at helping identify immigrants who may be in the country unlawfully.
The data-sharing arrangement, disclosed Thursday, marks a significant step in President Donald Trump’s renewed crackdown on illegal immigration and is raising alarm over potential privacy violations, particularly in relation to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which governs the protection of medical information.
A spokesperson for HHS said the arrangement between the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees ICE, complies fully with federal law.
“HHS acted entirely within its legal authority — and in full compliance with all applicable laws — to ensure that Medicaid benefits are reserved for individuals who are lawfully entitled to receive them,” the spokesperson said.
A DHS spokesperson confirmed the agency is working with CMS to ensure that individuals living in the U.S. illegally are not receiving Medicaid, the federal-state health program for low-income individuals.
First reported by the Associated Press, the agreement was signed Monday. It is the latest in a series of HHS initiatives aligned with the Trump administration’s strict immigration enforcement policies. Just last week, HHS expanded its interpretation of the “public charge” rule, which bars many immigrants from accessing federal benefits.
Federal law prohibits undocumented immigrants from enrolling in Medicaid. However, 14 states and the District of Columbia provide coverage to eligible children regardless of immigration status, and seven states plus D.C. extend that coverage to some adults.
“CMS is aggressively cracking down on states that may be misusing federal Medicaid funds to subsidize care for illegal immigrants,” the HHS spokesperson added. “This oversight effort — supported by lawful interagency data sharing with DHS — is focused on identifying waste, fraud, and systemic abuse.”
HHS declined to answer specific questions from Reuters about what kinds of data are being shared or how HIPAA protections will be maintained. However, the Associated Press, citing a copy of the agreement, reported that the information includes home addresses and ethnicities.
Privacy advocates warn that the move could deter immigrant communities from seeking necessary health care and raise legal challenges over the use of sensitive medical data in immigration enforcement.
