WA officials ‘outraged’ after immigrant Medicaid data shared with federal agencies
SEATTLE — The Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) confirms sensitive information tied to several of its healthcare programs was shared with federal immigration authorities. The agency said it had no idea the data would be used that way and wasn’t aware of it.
According to HCA, the agency shares Medicaid client data with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as required under federal law. However, CMS turned over that information to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) without notifying the state.
The transfer was ordered by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. under the Trump administration. It’s part of a broader push to identify and remove undocumented immigrants from Medicaid rolls in an effort to reduce federal spending.
Sattie Zapata-Nyachwaya, health policy program advisor for the ACLU of Washington, called it a breach of trust.
“The data that was shared with the federal government with ICE is just a gross violation of the residents and a violation of the promises that the healthcare authority made,” she said.
Governor Bob Ferguson also condemned the move, calling it politically motivated, saying in a statement, “It is outrageous that the Trump Administration took Washingtonians’ private health information and used it for its own political purposes. President Trump is targeting vulnerable Washingtonians to continue to sow chaos and fear. We are looking at all available options to protect the people of our state.”
The following programs were impacted by the breach:
- Alien Emergency Medical
- Apple Health Expansion
- Civil Transitions
- Non-Citizen Pregnant Women
- Medicaid Family Planning (Take Charge)
These programs serve Washington residents regardless of immigration status. Advocates say the data likely included personally identifiable information and believe the communities it affects were vulnerable from the start.
“We are standing in solidarity with immigrants regardless of their documentation status,” Zapata-Nyachwaya added. “They deserve access to healthcare.”
The ACLU of Washington is now calling for full accountability, a plan for next steps, and greater transparency from state and federal agencies.
“Not only do we want full accountability,” Zapata-Nyachwaya said, “but we want transparency on how we’re going to move forward in this moment.”
The Washington Health Care Authority released a statement, saying in part that it was “not consulted by CMS about the sharing of this information with other federal agencies, including those involved in immigration enforcement, and we were not given an opportunity to review or object.”
The data turned over to the Department of Homeland Security included protected health information of every Apple Health enrollee, HCA said in its statement.
“This is an unethical use of protected health information,” HCA added. “Anyone seeking health services are in a vulnerable state and their access deserves to be protected. We would never support the use of data submitted for health care purposes being repurposed by federal agencies seeking to unjustly target specific groups of individuals. Protecting the privacy of all of our Apple Health clients, regardless of their immigration status, is central to our mission, and we take these concerns extremely seriously.”
HCA said it is reviewing whether any recourse related to the “gross misuse of our data” is possible.
The Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network (WAISN) said it is “outraged” about this breach. Executive Director Catalina Velasquez said in a statement that, “At a time when the federal government is racially targeting our communities, militarizing our cities, and considering eugenicist policies like creating a list of people with autism and policing abortion care, this data breach is not just a concern to immigrants, but every Washingtonian.”
The data breach extends the harm to physical safety of all Washingtonians and especially immigrants, Velasquez said, adding that the “coalition stands ready to leverage our extensive experience supporting immigrant communities during similar crises.”
While Velasquez said Gov. Bob Ferguson and statements from other officials are appreciated, action must be taken.
“Let us be explicitly clear: Our elected leaders must address this situation immediately without defunding or eliminating the Apple Health Expansion program, which provides vital healthcare services to thousands of immigrants across our state,” Velasquez said. “Doing so will not change the fact that the data has already been shared, and would only further harm the communities impacted, cutting them off from vital healthcare services.”