Trump administration delivered data of immigrants with Medicaid to immigration officials
The Trump administration delivered personal data of immigrants enrolled in Medicaid to deportation officials at the Department of Homeland Security
Officials from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) delivered a data set on Medicaid recipients in California, Illinois, Washington state and Washington, D.C., according to The Associated Press. All of these states allow people to receive Medicaid benefits even if they are undocumented.
The Associated Press reported that it obtained an internal memo and emails showing that two top aides to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ordered the data sharing and gave CMS 45 minutes to comply.
The data includes names, addresses, Social Security numbers and immigration status.
California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, in a statement to the AP, said the “potential data transfer” was “extremely concerning and, if true, potentially unlawful, particularly given the numerous headlines highlighting the potential misuse of personal information by the federal government and federal actions targeting Americans’ personal information.”
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) aims to deport 3,000 immigrants without permanent legal status each day, according to White House adviser Stephen Miller.
The administration has frequently threatened states that don't cooperate with Trump's immigration policies. This week, Trump suggested he would like Newsom arrested for his response to protests in Los Angeles against federal immigration raids.
The CMS announced on May 27 that it was “strengthening federal oversight to prevent states from misusing federal Medicaid funds to cover health care for people in the country illegally,” in accordance with Trump’s “End the Taxpayer Subsidy for Open Borders” executive order, signed on February 19.
“Medicaid funds must serve Americans in need and those who are legally entitled to benefits,” CMS Deputy Director Drew Snyder said at the time. “If states can’t or won’t comply, CMS will step in.”
According to The Associated Press, Medicaid Deputy Director Sara Vitolo wrote in a memo that such a move could violate federal laws like the Social Security Act and the Privacy Act of 1974.
Last month, a judge authorized ICE to access IRS data to facilitate mass deportations, overturning decades of precedent on interagency handling of personal data.