Oregon Joins Lawsuit to Block Federal Use of Personal Health Data for Immigration Enforcement

A multistate coalition- including Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield- filed a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) decision to provide unfettered access to individual personal health data to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees federal agencies including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Lawsuit Challenges Trump Administration’s Personal Health Data Sharing With ICE

Since Congress enacted the Medicaid Act to provide medical assistance to vulnerable populations over seven decades ago, the personal healthcare data collected about beneficiaries of the program has been confidential in terms of federal law, policy, and practice.

This data may only be shared under specific, narrowly defined circumstances that benefit public health and the integrity of the Medicaid program itself.

Despite this, Oregonians said in April that  Elon Musk’s DOGE and Data Brokers have misused personal information under the Oregon Consumer Privacy Act (OCPA).

States learned through June 13 news reports that HHS has transferred, en masse, states’ Medicaid data files, which contain the personal health records of millions of people, to DHS.

It was reported that the federal government plans to create a sweeping database for “mass deportations” and other large-scale immigration enforcement purposes.

In the current lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, the AGs argue that mass transfer of this data violates the law.

Although a certain amount of personal data is routinely exchanged between the states and the federal government for administering Medicaid, including verifying eligibility for federal funding, DHS has acknowledged that the Medicaid Act and other federal healthcare authorities don’t permit the use of Medicaid personal information for immigration enforcement purposes.

Yet, the Trump administration has adopted a new policy that allows for the wholesale disclosure and use of personal Medicaid data of state residents for reasons unrelated to Medicaid program administration.

Rafield said, “This has a chilling impact on people who need healthcare in our country, as Parents may choose not to take their kids to the doctor because they’re afraid of what may happen.”

The coalition emphasized that the Trump Administration’s actions are illegal. The lawsuit requests that the court prohibit any new transfer or use of this data for immigration enforcement purposes.