Washington (AP) – President Donald Trump’s administration this week has provided personal data to deportation employees – including immigration status – millions of participants in Medicaid, a move that can make it easier to find people as part of its extensive immigration repression.
Internal Belemen and emails obtained from the Associated Press show that Medicaid staff unsuccessfully seek to block data transfer, referring to legal and ethical problems.
Nevertheless, two best advisers to health secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., ordered the data set handed over to the Ministry of Homeland Security, emails show. Officials at the Medicare and Medicaid Services centers received only 54 minutes on Tuesday to comply with the Directive.
The data set includes the information of people living in California, Illinois, Washington and Washington, Colombia County, all of which allow non -US -not -in -law citizens who pay for their expenses using only state dollars to taxpayers. CMS has transferred information just when the Trump administration has intensified its efforts to apply in southern California.
In addition to helping authorities to find migrants, experts said, the government can also use information to shake the hope of migrants to seek green cards, permanent residence or citizenship if they have ever received Medicaid benefits funded by the Federal Government.
California governor Gavin Newo said in a statement that it was concerned about how deportment staff could use data, especially since federal authorities carry out immigration attacks with the help of troops of the National Guard and Marines in Los Angeles.
“We deeply appreciate the confidentiality of all Californians,” the statement said. “This potential data transfer caught our attention from the AP is extremely concerned and, if true, potentially illegal, especially given the numerous titles that emphasize the potential misuse of personal information and federal actions to direct the personal information of Americans.”
Some MPs in California on Friday also expressed anxiety. US representative Laura Friedman, a Democrat, wrote to X that “We should never use a person’s need to go to the doctor against them. This will only lead to more chaos and pain in our communities.”
US Health and Human Services Spokesman Andrew Nixon said data sharing is legal. He refused to answer questions why the data was shared with DHS and how they would be used.
“With regard to the recent sharing of data between CMS and DHS, HHS acts entirely within its legal body – and in full compliance with all applicable laws – to ensure that Medicaid benefits are reserved for persons who have the right to receive them,” Nickson said.
An official with DHS, Assistant Secretary Tricia McLAughlin, Said in a Statement That Trump “Promised to Protect Medicaid for Eligible Beneficias. To Keep That Promise 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-B
The initiative seems to be part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to provide DHS with more data on migrants. For example, in May, Federal Judge refused to block the internal revenue service from sharing immigrants with immigration and customs execution to help agents find and retain people who live without legal status in the US
Purposeful review of millions of Medicaid immigrants participants
CMS announced at the end of last month that it was reviewing some state -owned Medicaid participants to ensure that federal funds were not used to pay coverage for people with “unsatisfactory immigration status”. In a letter sent to Medicaid civil servants, CMS said the efforts were part of Trump’s executive order on February 19, entitled “Termination of Taxpayers on Open Borders.”
As part of California, Washington and Illinois have shared details of non-US citizens who have enrolled in their country’s Medicaid program, according to a June 6 note signed by Medicaid Deputy Sarah Vitolo, received by AP. The memorandum was written by several CMS employees under the supervision of Vitolo, according to sources familiar with the process.
The data include addresses, names, social security numbers and claims for participants in these states, according to the note, and two people familiar with what the countries send to CMS. Both faces spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to share details of data exchange.
CMS employees have tried to fight the request for sharing the security data of the inner side, stating that in order to do so, it would violate the federal laws, including the Social Security Act and the Privacy Act of 1974, according to Vitolo’s note.
“Numerous federal legal and regulatory authorities do not allow CMS to share this information with subjects outside CMS,” Vitolo wrote, further explaining that sharing such personal data is only allowed to directly administrate the Medicaid program.
Sharing information about Medicaid candidates or participants with DHS employees would violate “long-standing policy”, writes Vitolo, a career employee, for the appointment of Trump Kim Brand, Deputy Administrator and CEO of CMS.
Vitolo and Brandt could not be reached for comment.
The legal arguments outlined in the note were not convincing to Trump’s appointed HHS, which led the Medicaid agency.
Four days after sending the note on June 10, HHS employees direct the transfer of “Data to DHS to 5:30 ET today”, according to the exchange of an email received by AP.
Former civil servants have said this move is unusual, since CMS, which has access to personal health data for almost half of the country, usually does not share such sensitive information with other departments.
“DHS has no role in anything related to Medicaid,” says Jeffrey Grant, a former career employee at CMS.
Beyond her legal arguments, Vitolo said that sharing information with DHS can have a freezing effect on countries, may encourage them to withstand information. Countries, she added that it is necessary to protect herself from the “legitimate risk” they take over by providing federal employees that can be shared with deportation staff.
“On” development
All countries must legally provide emergency services to Medicaid to citizens outside the United States, including those who are legally present but have not yet fulfilled a five -year wait to apply for Medicaid.
Seven states, along with the district, allow immigrants who do not live legally in the country to enroll – with full benefits – in the Medicaid program of their country. The countries launched these programs during the Biden administration and said they would not charge the federal government to cover the cost of health care for these immigrants.
The Trump administration raised doubts about this bet.
Nixon, the HHS spokesman, said Medicaid state -owned immigrants “have opened the floods for illegal immigrants to operate Medicaid – and forced the hardworking Americans to take the bill.”
All states – California, New York, Washington, Oregon, Illinois, Minnesota and Colorado – have democratic governors. Due to its budget woes of the state, Newsom announced earlier this year that it will freeze freezing in the program; Illinois will also close its program for approximately 30,000 non -US citizens in July.
Other states – New York, Oregon, Minnesota and Colorado – have not yet submitted CMS identified data as part of the review, according to a public health employee who has reviewed CMS’s requests to the United States.
Illinois health officials also said they were “deeply concerned” by the AP findings that reveal that information about Medicaid’s customers of Medicaid was shared with federal agencies outside the CMS, given that their “understanding of the federal law of 197. Health and personal data. “
In a statement issued after the publication of the history of AP, the California nuance said the decision to share the data “will endanger the safety, health and security of those who will undoubtedly be directed by this abuse.”
State health officers in the district and Washington did not respond to requests for comment.