A federal judge issued a ruling that Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials are now allowed to access Medicaid data to help them track down illegal aliens who are living in the United States without permission. According to the law, illegal aliens are not permitted to access Medicaid benefits. However, several states have plans that are funded at the state level that allow anyone to apply for healthcare.
Back in July, states sued the Department of Health and Human Services to allow the Department of Homeland Security to have “unfettered access” to Medicaid health data. These states are requesting that HHS’s transfer of such data to DHS to be declared unauthorized and to block it from being used to enforce immigration law.
U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria has, to some degree, denied the request for a preliminary injunction, saying “basic biographical, location, and contact information” is legal. However, he allowed the injunction in place concerning actual medical information. “We are disappointed in the court’s decision allowing for the sharing of some Medicaid data with ICE,” the office of California Attorney General Rob Bonta went on to say in a statement. “Though we are gratified that the court enjoined DHS’s broader efforts to obtain more sensitive health data; data of citizens, lawful permanent residents, and other people with lawful status; and data from other [Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services] administered health programs.”
According to a report from Breitbart News, a California Department of Justice spokesperson released a statement following the ruling that folks who signed up for Medicaid with the understanding that their personal information would be used only for that specific program. “The Trump Administration’s effort to use Medicaid data for immigration enforcement is a violation of their trust and will lead to fewer people seeking vital healthcare,” the statement read.
The order handed down by Chhabria’s order only allows ICE access to six different categories of personal information: citizenship, immigration status, address, phone number, date of birth, and Medicaid ID. And the only data they are given access to comes from individuals living in the country illegally. The order will stay in place until a final decision in the case is reached.
“Congress could not have made a clearer statement about DHS’s entitlement to certain data from other agencies, and that entitlement would be meaningless if it did not also obligate agencies to comply with DHS’s legitimate data requests,” Chhabria wrote in the ruling. DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said the ruling was a “victory for the rule of law and American taxpayers.”
“President Trump consistently promised to protect Medicaid for eligible beneficiaries,” McLaughlin continued, according to CBS News. She added, “To keep that promise after Joe Biden flooded our country with tens of millions of illegal aliens, CMS and DHS will ensure that illegal aliens do not receive Medicaid benefits that are meant for law-abiding Americans.”
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This enables immigration enforcement agencies to protect the resources of American taxpayers to ensure only citizens receive benefits. The information from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services can start sharing information with ICE on January 5 of the new year.