Trump administration accused of violating court order by sharing Medicaid data with ICE

More than a dozen Democratic-led states are accusing the Trump administration of violating a federal court order by sharing Medicaid data with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, asking a judge to enforce the ruling.

The states' complaint asks the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California to enforce its existing injunction blocking HHS from sharing Medicaid data with ICE. 

"The Trump Administration appears to be defying a direct court order blocking it from sharing the personal, sensitive data of individuals including U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents. It's invasive - and deeply troubling," said California Attorney General Bonta, who led the coalition of 22 states. "When Californians signed up for Medi-Cal, they did so with the understanding that their data would not be used for purposes unrelated to administering this program. I urge the court to enforce its earlier order and make clear that these guardrails exist for anyone who is lawfully residing in the United States."

The complaint stems from a lawsuit spearheaded by California in July 2025 against the Trump administration. The lawsuit accused Health and Human Services of violating federal law through its "mass transfer of sensitive Medicaid data" of both lawful permanent and temporary residents. The lawsuit also argued that the sharing of the personal information will likely create a "chilling effect on individuals' willingness to enroll in Medicaid programs" for which they are legally eligible.

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A federal judge ruled last December that the Trump administration is not allowed to collect the personal information of lawful permanent residents or citizens, but that it can continue to collect basic information from individuals such as addresses, birthdates and immigration status for residents with temporary status. However, the scope of data that can be collected is limited and cannot include sensitive health information. 

The attorneys general accuse Health and Human Services of sharing "a large and complex" set of data on Medicaid recipients with ICE, which is in violation of a federal court ruling allowing the exchange of limited personal information but excluding the information of legal permanent residents. The complaint also accuses the Trump administration of failing to share its criteria for determining if a resident is being "lawfully present."

CATO Institute Senior Legal Fellow Dan Greenberg told Fox News Digital there is "a strong possibility" that HHS and ICE violated the district court's order.

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"The reason this is a strong possibility is that DHHS communications apparently indicate that it shared a 'large and complex' dataset of Medicaid recipients with ICE," Greenberg said. "That phrase suggests that the dataset that was shared with ICE may have included information that is outside the scope of the court order. That is a question of fact: that is why the states are now asking the court to compel the federal government to explain just what was shared and how it is now being used."

Greenberg also pointed out that the Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System database does not "appear to have any simple or direct way to identify/single out immigrants who are undocumented," making "information-sharing that complies with that court order difficult or impossible."

"The TMSIS identifies people who are only eligible for emergency Medicaid services, but the problem is that this class of people includes both undocumented and lawfully present immigrants," Greenberg said. "In short, it is as if the court order said that only some of the information in one particular file should be disclosed, but there is reason to believe that DHHS decided that - because they can't figure out how to separate out this particular type of information - they may have handed over the whole filing cabinet."

In addition to California, attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin, and the governor of Kentucky signed on to the complaint.

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and Health and Human Services for comment.