Multistate Coalition Sues HHS for Sharing Personal Health Data With ICE and DHS
A California-led multistate coalition sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on Tuesday for providing individuals' health data to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
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At a press conference Tuesday, California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) said the suit "isn't about cutting waste or going after fraud ... it's about going after vulnerable people who entrusted the state and the federal government to help them access health care, a basic human right." The federal government, he said, has gone back on its word. This suit is about "flouting seven decades of federal law, policy and practice that have made it clear that personal healthcare data is confidential and can only be shared in certain narrow circumstances that benefit ... public health or the Medicaid program."
Bonta said HHS' sharing of personal data "really is ... the latest salvo in [President Donald Trump's] anti-immigrant campaign, an attack on public health and a breach of public trust that will have detrimental consequences for years to come.”
Filed in the U.S. District Court for Northern California, the suit alleges violations of the Administrative Procedure Act and says HHS' actions are contrary to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, Social Security Act and Privacy Act, among other statutes. In addition to California, 13 states -- Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon and Rhode Island -- are party to the suit.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong (D), in a press release, said, “Why does Trump need your medical records -- your immunization records, your weight, your cancer diagnosis, your prescriptions -- to advance his out-of-control deportation agenda? ... Trump is doing this to bully immigrant families away from seeking healthcare, and it’s making all of us less healthy and less safe.” He added, "Who is watching to make sure this incredibly sensitive information is not misused, lost or leaked?"
Washington Attorney General Nick Brown (D) said in a release that people’s “data should not go toward creating a giant database of Americans’ personal information or used so that ICE can deport undocumented immigrants because they had to go to the doctor.”
HHS defended itself in an email to us. “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,” said an HHS spokesperson.
On June 13, California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) slammed HHS for allegedly providing deportation officials with personal data, including immigration status, of millions enrolled in Medicaid, in a violation of privacy rights (see 2506130059).
“There's no telling how many people are suffering at home, too scared to get the care that they actually need,” Bonta said Tuesday. “No one should feel that way. No one should be afraid to get the medical treatment they need.”