Washington State sues Trump Administration for illegally sharing personal health data with ICE

SEATTLE– Washington Attorney General Nick Brown today joined a multistate coalition in filing a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) decision to provide unrestricted access to individual personal health data to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which houses Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

In the seven decades since Congress enacted the Medicaid Act to provide medical assistance to vulnerable populations, federal law, policy, and practice has been clear: the personal healthcare data collected about beneficiaries of the program is confidential, to be shared only in certain narrow circumstances that benefit public health and the integrity of the Medicaid program itself.

In today’s lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, the attorneys general argue that mass transfer of this data violates the law and ask the court to block any new transfer or use of this data for immigration enforcement purposes.

“Washington residents expect that the confidential information they give to the government to access medical treatment will only be used for healthcare purposes,” said Brown. “Their data should not go towards 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.”

"The Trump Administration's use of Washingtonians’ private health information for its own political agenda is outrageous. This is a violation of trust for everyone whose data was inappropriately shared, but especially our immigrant communities and mixed-status families, who are already being targeted by the Trump Administration. We will stand up for the dignity and right to privacy of all Washingtonians,” said Governor Bob Ferguson.

Created in 1965, Medicaid is an essential source of health insurance for lower-income individuals and particular underserved population groups, including children, pregnant people, individuals with disabilities, and seniors. The Medicaid program allows each participating state to develop and administer its own unique health plans; states must meet threshold federal statutory criteria, but they can tailor their plans’ eligibility standards and coverage options to residents’ needs. As of January 2025, 78.4 million people were enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) nationwide. 

Washington’s Medicaid program is operated as a part of the broader Apple Health suite of health benefits programs. Apple Health includes Apple Health Expansion which provides full-scope medical services to Washington residents regardless of their immigration status. There are more than 1.9 million Apple Health clients in Washington, including about 49,000 whose immigration status makes them ineligible for some federally funded programs. Apple Health covers a range of healthcare services, including inpatient and outpatient hospital care, primary and preventative care, long-term services and supports, and behavioral health. Washington residents signed up for Apple Health understanding that their information would be confidential and not shared for reasons unrelated to the provision of healthcare.

A certain amount of personal data is routinely exchanged between the states and the federal government for purposes of administering Medicaid. Prior to the current Trump Administration, DHS has acknowledged that the Medicaid Act and other federal healthcare authorities prohibit the use of Medicaid personal information for immigration enforcement purposes. However, the federal government appears to have — without formal acknowledgment — created a new policy that allows for the wholesale disclosure and use of state residents’ personal Medicaid data for purposes unrelated to Medicaid program administration.

On June 13, 2025, states learned through news reports that HHS has transferred en masse their state’s Medicaid data files, containing personal health records representing millions of individuals, to DHS. Reports indicate that the federal government plans to create a sweeping database for “mass deportations” and other large-scale immigration enforcement purposes.

The federal government claims it gave this data to DHS “to ensure that Medicaid benefits are reserved for individuals who are lawfully entitled to receive them.” But since 1986 Congress has extended coverage and federal funds for emergency Medicaid to all individuals residing in the United States, regardless of immigration status. The states have and will continue to cooperate with federal oversight activities to ensure that the federal government pays only for those Medicaid services that are legally authorized. 

In today’s lawsuit, the coalition highlights that the Trump Administration’s illegal actions are creating fear and confusion that will lead noncitizens and their family members to disenroll, or refuse to enroll, in emergency Medicaid for which they are otherwise eligible, leaving states and their safety net hospitals to foot the bill for federally mandated emergency healthcare services. These individuals may not get the emergency health services they need and will suffer negative health consequences — and even death — as a result.

The coalition asks that the court find the Trump Administration’s actions arbitrary and capricious and rulemaking without proper procedure in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act, contrary to the Social Security Act, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), Federal Information Security Modernization Act, and Privacy Act, and in violation of the Spending Clause. The coalition also asks the court to enjoin HHS from transferring personally identifiable Medicaid data to DHS or any other federal agency and enjoin DHS from using this data to conduct immigration enforcement. 

In filing the lawsuit, AG Brown joins the attorneys general of California, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, and Rhode Island.  

The complaint is being filed today. The press release will be updated with a link to the complaint when it is available.

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