Advocates Applaud Congressional Oversight of HHS Data Release

EL PASO, TEXAS — A group of 30 members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter Monday challenging the Trump administration’s sharing of Medicaid data with immigration officials. Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) and Diana DeGette (D-Colorado) coordinated the letter to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, which requests documents and information about the data release, citing the “significant impact this data sharing could have on the health of millions of Americans and the violations of privacy it raises.”

The Associated Press reported earlier this month that political appointees at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services overrode the legal advice of career civil servants in sharing personal information about millions of people who get health care through Medicaid with immigration officials. AP cites an internal HHS memo, reportedly authored by Medicaid Deputy Director Sara Vitolo, warning that such data sharing is barred by “multiple federal statutory and regulatory authorities.”

Reacting to the congressional oversight letter, the Protecting Immigrant Families coalition released the following statement from its director, Adriana Cadena.

“We applaud the leadership of Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez and Congresswoman DeGette, and the other lawmakers who acted to hold the Trump administration accountable. Today it’s people in immigrant families, but if the Trump administration can ignore the law, next time it could be any of us. This is about whether the American people can trust their government to follow the law and protect their health information.”