Episode #16 Deep Dive – ICE, Medicaid, and the New Attack on Health Care Privacy
A deep dive into this week's episode of Paging America
(Photo Credit: AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Unnecessary deaths from the Trump budget bill
A new study published in the JAMA Health Forum titled, “Projected Health System and Economic Impacts of 2025 Medicaid Policy Proposals” shows that there will be nearly 1,500 unnecessary deaths in the U.S. each year because of the cuts to Medicaid in Trump’s budget bill:
CBO projections suggest 7.6 million individuals in the US would become uninsured by 2034 due to Medicaid policy changes. This is estimated to result in approximately 1,484 excess deaths, 94,802 preventable hospitalizations, 1.6 million people delaying care due to cost, and 1.9 million cases of medication nonadherence annually by 2034.
Another predicts an increase in overdose deaths by 1,000 each year:
[C]uts to Medicaid could result in large numbers of the program’s beneficiaries losing access to medications for opioid use disorder, per the new estimate, which was published by researchers at Boston University and the University of Pennsylvania.
“We estimate that the bill will cause approximately 156,000 people to lose access to treatment for opioid use disorder and that the overdose rate among that group will double, leading to approximately 1,000 additional fatal overdoses each year,” reads the policy memo, which was addressed to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Sen. Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.).
CONFIRMED: HHS data being used to hunt undocumented immigrants
Via the AP: Trump administration hands over Medicaid recipients’ personal data, including addresses, to ICE:
Lawmakers and some CMS officials have challenged the legality of deportation officials’ access to some states’ Medicaid enrollee data. It’s a move, first reported by the AP last month, that Health and Human Services officials said was aimed at rooting out people enrolled in the program improperly.
But the latest data-sharing agreement makes clear what ICE officials intend to do with the health data.
“ICE will use the CMS data to allow ICE to receive identity and location information on aliens identified by ICE,” the agreement says.
Meanwhile, RFK, Jr. announced that his department is immediately restricting undocumented immigrants' access to Head Start, community health centers, and other federal benefits. AXIOS reports that federally funded clinics that are supposed to serve everyone are now trying to figure out if they need to demand proof of citizenship before treating a patient. Leaders told AXIOS that they don't track patients' immigration status, let alone ask for proof of citizenship before providing care.
An article on Nurse.org titled “ICE Concerns May Be Keeping Some Patients From Hospitals, Nurses Say” lays out the perils for the immigrant community and other results stemming from this ruling including:
Potential Delays and Avoidance in Seeking Medical Help
No-Show Rates at Community Clinics Soaring
Mental Health and Trauma Risks
Ethical Considerations and Reported Practices. According to Dr. Hannah Janeway, ICE agents have:
Entered ERs in ski masks, green fatigues, and bulletproof vests.
Refused to identify themselves or present badges as required.
Not accommodated patient privacy during interviews and medical exams.
Prevented contact with patients’ families—even when needed for critical medical decisions.
Entered private patient areas without judicial warrants.
"They are trying to turn us into immigration agents," one CMS official told MedPage Today. The official did not have permission to speak to the media and insisted on anonymity.
In response to Kennedy’s move, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont is urging everyone in his state to go to health care centers to get the health care they need, regardless of their immigration status. “We’re doing our best to keep you out of the emergency room, keep you out of more expensive care at the hospital, and we’re taking care of people, no questions asked,” he said.
Also in response, Democratic attorneys general from 20 states and D.C. are suing the Trump administration over the action.
In other RFK, Jr. news, AXIOS reports that he may already be running for president after the head of his super PAC co-hosted an organizing call for supporters and influencers last week.
Banning Mifepristone
Washington Post: West Virginia’s near-total abortion pill ban upheld by federal court:
A divided federal appeals court on Tuesday allowed West Virginia to restrict access to mifepristone, the pill used to end pregnancies that has emerged as a focal point of legal battles over abortion.
The decision marks the first time a federal appeals court has allowed a state to strictly limit the drug, teeing up a key test of states’ powers to ban medication approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
Florida’s surgeon general Joseph Ladapo continues his anti-vaxx crusade
Via WUSF/NPR: Florida's surgeon general calls for more study of people injured by COVID mRNA vaccines
Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo is urging more study of people who say they were injured by COVID-19 vaccines.
At a press conference in Tampa on Thursday, Ladapo also praised the federal government's decision in May, announced by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., to no longer recommend COVID-19 mRNA vaccines for healthy children and pregnant women.
Ladapo said he'd like to see an even broader recommendation.
"I hope that we get there because these products, they should not be used in any human beings," Ladapo said.
Dig Deeper
JAMA Health Forum: Projected Health System and Economic Impacts of 2025 Medicaid Policy Proposals
STAT: GOP tax law will increase overdose deaths by 1,000 each year, analysis finds
AP: Trump administration hands over Medicaid recipients’ personal data, including addresses, to ICE
AXIOS: Undocumented immigrants barred from Head Start, other federal benefits
Nurse.org: ICE Concerns May Be Keeping Some Patients From Hospitals, Nurses Say
MedPage Today: Trump Admin Hands Over Nation's Medicaid Enrollee Data to ICE
CT Mirror: Lamont urges CT residents to keep using health centers, despite Trump policy shift
AP: Lawsuit challenges restrictions on Head Start for kids in the US illegally
AXIOS: RFK Jr.'s PAC stirs, fueling speculation on a 2028 campaign
Washington Post: West Virginia’s near-total abortion pill ban upheld by federal court
WUSF/NPR: Florida's surgeon general calls for more study of people injured by COVID mRNA vaccines