Medicaid officials have reportedly granted Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) access to a database containing sensitive personal information—including home addresses, Social Security numbers, and ethnicities—sparking backlash from civil rights advocates and healthcare experts.
According to a document obtained by the Associated Press, the agreement allows ICE to use this data to locate “the location of aliens.” Medicaid, the largest health insurer in the U.S., covers 79 million low-income, disabled, and elderly Americans.
“This is about the weaponization of data, full stop,” said Representative Pramila Jayapal of Washington, a longtime advocate for healthcare reform.
“Trump said he would go after the ‘worst of the worst’ immigrants, yet now is giving ICE EVERYONE’s Medicaid data, even as ICE targets US citizens. Oh, and undocumented immigrants can’t even enroll in Medicaid.”
The agreement between the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) was first reported in June. Sources told Associated Press that top aides to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pushed the deal through, despite internal opposition from career civil servants who warned the move could violate several federal laws.
“Multiple federal statutory and regulatory authorities do not permit CMS to share this information with entities outside of CMS,” Medicaid Deputy Director Sara Vitolo wrote in a memo obtained by the AP.
Still, the agreement states:
“ICE will use the CMS data to allow ICE to receive identity and location information on aliens identified by ICE.”
Trump administration officials defended the deal, saying it’s necessary to prevent fraud, waste, and abuse within the Medicaid program.
“HHS and CMS take the integrity of the Medicaid program and the protection of American taxpayer dollars extremely seriously,” said HHS spokesperson Emily Hilliard.
“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.”
Hilliard also blamed the Biden administration for allowing undocumented immigrants to abuse the program, describing the data-sharing agreement as part of a broader oversight initiative to restore Medicaid’s credibility.
“We are not only protecting taxpayer dollars – we are restoring credibility to one of America’s most vital programs.”
Similarly, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin echoed those sentiments:
“President Trump consistently promised to protect Medicaid for eligible beneficiaries. To keep that promise after Joe Biden flooded our country with tens of millions of illegal aliens, CMS and DHS are exploring an initiative to ensure that illegal aliens are not receiving Medicaid benefits that are meant for law-abiding Americans.”
In early July, the Trump administration and congressional Republicans slashed $1 trillion from Medicaid—a move that could cost nearly 12 million Americans their coverage over the next nine years.
The administration has also ramped up its immigration enforcement campaign, with a goal of detaining up to 3,000 undocumented migrants per day. Between January and May, officials were averaging about 650 arrests daily.
ICE has expanded arrests to places once considered off-limits, including churches, courthouses, and various workplaces. Immigrant farm workers report feeling “hunted like animals,” and construction laborers face growing exploitation amid the crackdown.
While undocumented migrants are largely ineligible for Medicaid, some lawfully present noncitizens can receive benefits. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, they make up about 6% of current Medicaid enrollees.
In California, income-eligible undocumented immigrants were once allowed to enroll, but Governor Gavin Newsom recently paused new enrollments.
The AP could not confirm whether ICE has started using Medicaid data, but the mere existence of such an agreement has raised fears. Experts warn it could discourage both adults and children from seeking vital healthcare services.
“This is a privacy violation of unprecedented proportions and betrayal of trust, as the government has explicitly said, for decades, that this information will never be used for immigration enforcement,” said Ben D’Avanzo, a healthcare strategist with the National Immigration Law Center.
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