Judge Allows Limited Medicaid Data Sharing With ICE Starting Jan. 6

Overview

• U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria ruled on Dec. 29 that DHS and HHS acted within the law to permit only basic beneficiary details to be shared with immigration authorities.
• Beginning Jan. 6, ICE may receive limited identifiers such as citizenship or status, address, phone number, date of birth, and Medicaid ID.
• The order blocks access to medical histories and other sensitive clinical data, as well as information about U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, and mixed‑status households.
• The ruling leaves a partial injunction in place for any data beyond the narrow set approved, with the case continuing and federal agencies pressed to clarify their policies.
• States that sued, including California, warned of privacy risks and potential chilling effects, noting that emergency Medicaid encounters can create administrative records that appear in databases.