20 US states sue Trump administration over sharing of medical aid data with deportation officials
Health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr's advisors ordered the release of a dataset including the private health information of people in California, Illinois, Washington, and Washington to the Department of Homeland Security last month, AP news agency reported.
Those jurisdictions let noncitizens enroll in Medicaid programmes that pay for their expenses using only state taxpayer dollars.
"The Trump Administration has upended longstanding privacy protections with its decision to illegally share sensitive, personal health data with ICE," said California Attorney General Rob Bonta in a statement announcing the lawsuit.
"In doing so, it has created a culture of fear that will lead to fewer people seeking vital emergency medical care," npr.org quoted Bonta's statement.
The data shared reportedly included names, addresses, Social Security numbers, immigration status, and medical claims—an unusual move that coincided with stepped-up immigration enforcement efforts.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, Andrew Nixon, defended the decision, saying that it was in compliance with all laws.
"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," AP quoted Nixon.
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