Undocumented immigrants enrolled in Washington’s Apple Health Expansion program are raising concerns after learning that their Medicaid data was shared with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
“It was a double-edged sword, where now they have learned that information has been shared with Immigration Customs Enforcement. Some of those community members really needed that healthcare as well. They received some care but on the other hand now their information has been shared," said Liz Oropeza Palacios, a community advocate at Northwest Immigrant Rights Project.
In December, community members gathered in a grocery store parking lot in Wenatchee to learn about the state’s newly expanded health coverage for adults, regardless of immigration status. Washington state launched a program in July 2024 called the Apple Health Expansion, which covered Medicaid for 13,000 people. Within the first two days the application was open, the program reached capacity, and more than 17,000 people joined the waitlist to receive coverage.
However, in June of this year, nationwide data from Medicaid programs, including the Apple Health Expansion, had been shared with Homeland Security. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ordered the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to hand over personal data to the Department of Homeland Security, according to the Associated Press.
The information included names, addresses, social security numbers, household size, services received, and health care providers visited.
In response, a federal judge temporarily blocked DHS from using the Medicaid data for immigration enforcement purposes.
Palacios works with immigrants, organizing educational and multilingual “Know Your Rights” sessions to help people navigate the U.S. immigration system.
Before she was with NWIRP, she was an insurance navigator helping people understand health care insurance, including Apple Health. She helped organize a Posada de Salud, a holiday gathering inspired by the Mexican posada tradition, to connect Wenatchee residents with health care resources, including signing people up for the expansion.
Before the expansion program, undocumented immigrants did not qualify to receive Apple Health. She saw this program as an opportunity for people to receive care. Oropeza said it was never her goal to instill fear into people and said she feels misled that the data was shared.
“People wait until the last moment to go to the emergency room. There are families who didn’t have their cancer detected until their very last moments, and it could have been prevented if they were receiving preventative care,” said Palacios.
Washington Apple Health, administered by the Washington Health Care Authority, has a toolkit on immigrant health coverage in Washington. In the Apple Health Expansion Communications Toolkit,a guide for Medicaid by Washington Apple Health outlines, “HCA does not share client information with any immigration agency, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement or other federal agencies. Eligibility for Apple Health Expansion is exempt from the public charge test.”
On July 31, the Washington State Health Care Authority released a statement concerning privacy and information sharing. The organization said the data sharing was out of its control. HCA outlined what information it collects, uses and shares, and said that it is required by law that the organization send information to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services because the program receives federal funding.
Columbia Valley Community Health is a health care provider in North Central Washington (CVCH). Its CEO Manuel Navarro said in a statement that his organization is concerned by the reports of federal officials sharing Medicaid patient data with Homeland Security. He said CVCH is committed to protecting patient privacy and providing care.
“It is extremely troubling to learn that an external action, entirely beyond our control, could compromise patient privacy,” Navarro said.
In response, Washington, Oregon and 13 other state attorneys general are suing the federal government for sharing Medicaid records with federal immigration enforcement officials.
For Palacios, she has spoken with many people who have begun delaying or avoiding care because of the information that was shared.
“Even as a community advocate, I feel like I was used,” she said. “I went out and spoke to people who trusted me. I told them about the expansion, and now they don’t feel safe.”
Reneé Diaz may be contacted at [email protected]. Collaborative reporting by The Wenatchee World, NWPB and Murrow College of Communication Newsroom Fellowship.
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