Attorney General Neronha joins coalition to sue Trump Administration for illegally sharing personal health data
Published on Wednesday, July 02, 2025
Attorney General Peter F. Neronha joined a multistate coalition in filing a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) decision to provide unfettered access of individual personal health data to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which houses Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Personal healthcare data collected about Medicaid beneficiaries is confidential; only to be shared in certain narrow circumstances that benefit public health and the integrity of the Medicaid program itself. In yesterday’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 federal law and ask the court to block any new transfer or use of this data for immigration enforcement purposes.
“The indiscriminate sharing of personal health information by the Trump Administration is unnecessary and unlawful,” said Attorney General Neronha. “As a country, we made the decision that all individuals residing in the United States are entitled to emergency Medicaid coverage, regardless of immigration status. This Congressionally-authorized emergency coverage aims to prevent people residing in the United States from dying in the streets while avoiding necessary medical treatment. By sharing this information with DHS and ICE, this Administration is attempting to scare residents away from receiving the federally-mandated medical treatment to which they are entitled. Further, when people don’t seek medical care for infectious disease, we are all put in harm’s way. As Americans, we care about the health and well-being of our neighbors, and we must reject this newest unlawful attempt to harm the people of this country.”
Created in 1965, Medicaid is an essential source of health insurance for lower-income individuals and particular underserved population groups, including children, pregnant women, 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. According to recent data collated by the Kaiser Family Foundation, over 300,000 children and adults are enrolled in Rhode Island Medicaid. The program covers 43% of all births in the state, and over one-quarter of Medicaid enrollees are children.
A certain amount of personal data is routinely exchanged between the states and the federal government for purposes of administering Medicaid, including verifying eligibility for federal funding. Historically, DHS has acknowledged that the Medicaid Act and other federal healthcare authorities foreclose the use of Medicaid personal information for immigration enforcement purposes. Yet now, the federal government appears to have — without formal acknowledgment — adopted 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 it is Congress that 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 the 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, Attorney General Neronha joins the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington.
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