Arizona joins lawsuit over Trump administration sharing private health data

PHOENIX — Arizona is now involved in a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the potential exposure of personal health data to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

“The illegal transfer of Arizonans’ private, personally identifiable health data is unacceptable,” Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said in a Tuesday announcement.

This move to stop DHS from receiving data from the Department of Health and Human Services marks the twentieth lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s administration Mayes has involved Arizona in.

Last week, she joined a multistate lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s administration over billions in critical funding cuts.

Details about lawsuit against Trump administration over personal health data

Mayes said states learned through media reports in June that DHS transferred millions of people’s personal health records to federal immigration authorities.

She worries the Trump administration could use this data to build a database for mass deportations and other broad immigration enforcement operations.

“Arizonans accessing Medicaid services do so with the assurance that their data would be confidential,” Mayes said.

Arizona’s Medicaid system is the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (AHCCCS).

“While administering AHCCCS and other health care programs, Arizona has relied on the federal government’s assurances that it will follow the law and protect confidentiality,” Mayes said. “It appears the federal government has broken their promise.”

What Kris Mayes hopes to accomplish by suing Trump administration

Mayes and the other attorneys general involved in the lawsuit hope the court will find the Trump administration’s actions to be a violation of the Administrative Procedure Act and contrary to various laws, including the Social Security Act and HIPAA.

They want the court to enjoin HHS from transferring the data to DHS. They argued that the transfer of data is causing fear and confusion among communities of undocumented immigrants, whose families might disenroll in Medicaid for which they are eligible.

This will leave states and safety net hospitals to foot bills for emergency health care services mandated by law, according to the coalition.

Without access to emergency health services, noncitizens and their families could suffer negative health consequences or even death, according to the lawsuit.

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