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HR 5319119th CongressIntroduced
LINE Act
Introduced: Sep 11, 2025
Technology & Innovation
Standard Summary
Comprehensive overview in 1-2 paragraphs
The LINE Act would prohibit the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from disclosing Medicaid-eligible individuals’ personally identifiable health information to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for the purpose of enforcing immigration laws. The prohibition applies despite the Privacy Act, and targets data obtained in relation to an individual's enrollment in a state Medicaid program (or related waivers). In short, it is a privacy shield intended to keep Medicaid enrollment data from being used by immigration authorities for removal or enforcement actions, while not necessarily barring all other non-immigration disclosures.
Key Points
- 1Short title: The act may be cited as the Limiting ICE's Nationwide Encroachment Act (LINE Act).
- 2Prohibition on disclosure: CMS and HHS may not disclose individually identifiable health information obtained through Medicaid enrollment to any person, including ICE, for immigrations-enforcement purposes.
- 3Privacy Act override: The prohibition explicitly states it applies notwithstanding section 552a of title 5 (the Privacy Act).
- 4Scope of data: Applies to individually identifiable health information defined under HIPAA (the Social Security Act’s section 1171(6)) that is obtained in relation to enrollment under a state Medicaid plan or waivers of that plan (Title XIX).
- 5Status: Introduced in the 119th Congress and referred to committees; no passage or enactment yet.
Impact Areas
Primary group/area affected: Medicaid enrollees (including immigrants) whose health information is part of enrollment records; their privacy protections in the Medicaid program.Secondary group/area affected: ICE (immigration enforcement), CMS, HHS, and state Medicaid agencies that handle enrollment data and disclosures.Additional impacts: Could constrain ICE’s ability to obtain Medicaid enrollment data for immigration investigations, potentially affecting enforcement workflows. May influence data-sharing practices and compliance requirements within CMS/HHS and state Medicaid programs, while leaving non-immigration data uses under existing authorities.
Generated by gpt-5-nano on Oct 2, 2025