DENVER – The safety, health, and privacy of thousands of Colorado children is at risk due to an unprecedented request from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for our state to share the personal data of people who get health coverage through Colorado’s Medicaid program, including their addresses and immigration status.
Colorado families trust our health care system and providers with the health and safety of their children,” said Heather Tritten, President and CEO of the Colorado Children’s Campaign. “This request is already stirring fear and uncertainty for the thousands of Coloradans who have taken a step to support their families’ health by enrolling in public health coverage. Sharing this data would be a devastating betrayal of their trust.”
The Associated Press reports that CMS has already shared the personal information of Medicaid enrollees from other states, including their immigration status, with the Department of Homeland Security.
Colorado provides public health coverage for children and pregnant women who are undocumented immigrants through programs like Emergency Medicaid and Cover All Coloradans. Having health coverage as a child is associated with positive health and educational outcomes and also supports the financial stability of families and health providers.
While our immediate concern is for Colorado’s immigrant community and immigrant children, we should all be concerned about the implications of this request,” Tritten said. “This information is collected so that our state can effectively provide health coverage to people who need it. It was never intended to be used to target individuals for immigration enforcement.”
The Colorado Children’s Campaign commends Colorado’s efforts to make sure that children can go to the doctor when they need to and that families are not needlessly bankrupted by medical bills, regardless of their immigration status. Providing health coverage for children is an investment in our state’s future.
More than one in three children in Colorado – nearly 580,000 children – have health coverage through Medicaid. As of this spring, approximately 10,000 children had coverage through Cover All Coloradans, which serves immigrant children and pregnant women regardless of immigration status.
The Colorado Children’s Campaign calls on Colorado’s leaders to continue to protect this data and commit to making our state a place where all children and families can thrive.