By Alex Carter

MaineCare (Maine’s Medicaid program) provides free and low-cost healthcare to people in Maine. Many immigrants are eligible for MaineCare, depending on their income, immigration status, age, and whether they are pregnant. 

States have always been required to share certain data with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the federal agency that oversees Medicaid (MaineCare). This data includes information like names, addresses, phone numbers, Social Security numbers, date of birth, race/ethnicity, Medicaid coverage category, and citizenship status.

In the past, CMS did not share data with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which enforces immigration laws. However, a new data-sharing agreement between CMS and DHS allows some Medicaid data from people who are not lawfully residing in the United States to be shared with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Some data still cannot lawfully be shared, including information about U.S. citizens, people who are lawfully residing in the United States, or sensitive medical records.

Families need to weigh getting healthcare coverage against the possible risk that their information may now be shared for other purposes, including immigration enforcement. 

Every family’s circumstances are different, so it’s important to consider the following when deciding about risk.

Do you already have MaineCare?

ADVERTISEMENT

If you already have MaineCare and have not moved, there is no reason to withdraw or stop using those benefits at this point. Withdrawing will not erase your data from CMS records or impact your immigration case. 

Are you thinking of applying for MaineCare?

If the federal government does not already know your identity and location and someone in your family needs assistance, the risk of applying may be different. If you have concerns about the impacts of your immigration status, please contact an immigration attorney.

Are you in a “mixed status” household? 

Only  people who are applying for MaineCare need to share their immigration status. When completing an application for MaineCare, or other benefits like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), you are not required to provide the Social Security Number or immigration status of family members who are not seeking benefits for themselves, and you should not include that information. 

For example, if a parent is applying for MaineCare for their child but not for themselves, the parent’s immigration status is not needed for the application. However, if the parent or ineligible household member is also applying for Emergency MaineCare, they do need to verify their immigration status with DHS.

Have you applied for immigration relief? 

If DHS is already aware of your presence in the United States and has your address (such as from an immigration-related process or application), there may not be an additional risk to applying for or receiving public benefits like MaineCare.

What if I don’t qualify for full MaineCare? 

Emergency MaineCare helps hospitals pay for emergency medical care for people who do not qualify for full-scope MaineCare due to their immigration status. This includes foreign students, temporary visa holders, asylum seekers, green card holders subject to the five-year bar, and people who are not lawfully present in the United States. Information shared with the federal government does include the fact that someone is only eligible for Emergency MaineCare, but does not include a person’s exact immigration status. 

You do not need to disclose your immigration status on an Emergency MaineCare application. You have the right to decline to apply for Emergency Medicaid and still get treatment, but you may receive bills for any medical care you receive without coverage. 

Individual choice and risk assessment 

Only you can decide what’s best for you and your family when it comes to sharing your information with the government. 

Remember: Maine DHHS does not make house calls unannounced. If you need to get in touch with DHHS about your MaineCare, call 1-855-797-4357.

Our medical system is built around the idea that we should “do no harm.” This means caring for people who are sick, no matter where they were born or what their ability is to pay, and safeguarding patients’ safety and privacy. We cannot allow our healthcare system or essential public benefit programs to be misused in the Trump administration’s dangerous and chaotic immigration agenda.