Records raise urgent questions about broken medical claims system for ICE/CBP detainees. When VA stopped processing claims, ICE warned the abrupt termination could lead to "medical complications or loss of life" Thursday, American Oversight released new records raising urgent questions about whether the Trump administration is meeting its obligation to provide adequate medical care to people in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody after it disrupted the longstanding system responsible for processing payments for offsite treatment. Federal law and agency policies mandate that ICE and CBP provide medical care for people in their custody. As reported by the Los Angeles Times, the records American Oversight obtained document more than 233,000 medical, dental, and pharmacy claims totaling more than $96 million that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) processed on behalf of ICE's Health Service Corps (IHSC) last year, illustrating the extraordinary scale and seriousness of the medical care flowing through the system immediately before payments stopped. The VA's decision to suddenly end its decades-long practice of processing claims created - in ICE's words - an "absolute emergency," because "lack of this support will delay critical medical care" as the "health, welfare, and lives of [people] in ICE and CBP custody are significantly at risk." ICE even warned that the abrupt termination could lead to "medical complications or loss of life." The records include previously undisclosed data documenting 233,772 claims processed by VA on behalf of IHSC and CBP between Jan. 1 and Oct. 7, 2025, as well as the interagency agreement that previously facilitated this arrangement and VA's August 2025 notice to ICE that it would terminate its longstanding claims processing support in order to reallocate resources to other programs. The newly released claims data provides an unprecedented snapshot of the serious healthcare needs that often cannot be met in federal detention facilities - at a time when the detained population has skyrocketed, nearly doubling between January 2025 and January 2026. The records include claims associated with treatment for serious medical conditions, including heart attacks, strokes, traumatic brain injuries, acute kidney failure, mental health crises, infectious diseases like tuberculosis and HIV, pregnancy-related care, dehydration, heat stroke, starvation, suicide attempts and suicidal ideation, and physical and sexual abuse, among many others. "These records expose some of the potential human consequences of an immigration detention system that has grown increasingly punitive and abusive under the Trump administration. They document hundreds of thousands of medical claims for people in ICE and CBP custody receiving treatment for everything from starvation and heat stroke to suicide attempts and alleged physical and sexual abuse," said its Executive Director Chioma Chukwu. "The data illustrates both the immense medical needs of people held in detention and the extraordinary scale of the care that was flowing through the system before payments came to a halt. Given the Trump administration's well-documented record of preventable deaths and other serious harms linked to inadequate medical care in immigration detention, the public has every right to know whether human beings in government custody are receiving the medical care they need. That imperative is only more urgent as the administration rapidly expands detention at enormous taxpayer expense while continuing to dismantle oversight and accountability. A federal government that chooses to deprive people of their liberty must also assume responsibility for providing adequate health care. These records raise urgent questions about whether it is meeting that obligation." To replace the sudden void created by VA, ICE awarded two no-bid contracts for over $110 million to Acentra and Ardent last fall, to process claims and reimburse offsite providers on behalf of IHSC and CBP. However, it appears that providers have not been paid for care provided on or after Oct. 1, 2025, despite Acentra reportedly receiving nearly $45 million, and might not start issuing payments for months to come. In May 2026, VA stepped back in to process claims with dates of service through Sept. 30, 2025. Publicly available government contracting information suggests that ICE has started looking for new vendors who could assist with claims processing despite their previous $110 million sole source awards. Because of ICE's inability to effectively and efficiently reimburse providers, there is a risk that detainees may not receive urgent, critical medical care. A recent report on immigration detention in California noted that this interruption in claims processing "has caused widespread disruption in the provision of appropriate medical care at facilities in California." ICE's failure to pay these bills has led to some medical providers denying services to detainees. Members of Congress recently opened an investigation following reports that people died while in ICE custody after not receiving appropriate offsite care. Experts warn that delayed care has already contributed to the skyrocketing number of deaths in detention. Previously, American Oversight partnered with the ACLU and Physicians for Human Rights to release "Deadly Failures: Preventable Deaths in U.S. Immigration Detention," which revealed that 95 percent of deaths in ICE custody during the first Trump administration were preventable or potentially preventable with proper medical care.

American Oversight obtains previously undisclosed TSA-ICE agreement, raises questions about sworn Trump admin testimony. Its lawsuit uncovered the agreement formalizing TSA's role in the Trump administration's expanded immigration enforcement into domestic air travel Tuesday, American Oversight released a previously undisclosed agreement showing that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) formalized a data-sharing partnership amid the Trump administration's controversial expansion of immigration enforcement into domestic air travel. Provisions of that agreement appear at odds with sworn congressional testimony by agency leadership about the sharing and storage of sensitive passenger information. The Memorandum of Agreement (MOA), signed in May 2025, was produced after American Oversight sued TSA and ICE under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for failing to release records about the arrangement. The lawsuit sought documents explaining the program's legal basis, what passenger information was being shared, and how that information was being used to expand immigration enforcement into domestic air travel. The MOA establishes a formal framework governing how TSA and ICE coordinate the sharing, storage, and management of information under the agencies' partnership. As the legal basis for TSA's participation, the agreement expressly cites the Secure Flight Final Rule, the regulation governing the collection and use of passenger information for aviation security. The agreement states that TSA intends to share specified data elements with ICE and that ICE will store information received from TSA in its own repository, while appendices identifying the specific data to be shared remain almost entirely redacted. The document raises questions about acting TSA Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill's sworn congressional testimony earlier this year regarding how TSA and ICE exchange traveler information. During a House committee hearing, McNeill testified that TSA does not "send the information to ICE; we help ICE check against [TSA] information." The MOA appears to conflict with that characterization by establishing a formal data-sharing arrangement and outlining procedures for ICE to retain information obtained from TSA. "This agreement pulls back the curtain on the formal partnership between TSA and ICE that the administration refused to explain to the public. Americans provide their personal information to board a plane safely, not to become part of an immigration enforcement system or a government surveillance network," said its Executive Director Chioma Chukwu. "And this isn't just about TSA. It's about an administration that keeps taking information Americans are required to provide for one purpose and repurposing it for another: to identify, track, and target people for immigration enforcement. That's a dangerous precedent with consequences far beyond immigration. Once the government begins expanding how it uses Americans' personal information, it raises profound concerns about privacy, civil liberties, and public trust." In December 2025, reporting revealed that TSA was sharing passenger information with ICE to identify travelers for possible immigration enforcement. While the Trump administration publicly described the arrangement as routine information sharing between DHS agencies, it never disclosed that the partnership had been formalized through an MOA. That previously undisclosed agreement reveals the extent to which the agencies institutionalized their collaboration. The MOA's public release arrives as scrutiny of airport immigration arrests continues to grow following several recent incidents, including in Boston, Las Vegas, and Denver, and after reporting indicates TSA shared information on more than 31,000 travelers, leading to more than 800 immigration-related arrests. The administration has remained noncommittal about providing Congress with details about the program. During his Senate committee confirmation hearing earlier this month, TSA Administrator nominee David Cummins declined to explain what information TSA shares with ICE after Sen. Gary Peters noted that the agency had failed to provide requested details despite acting Administrator McNeill's earlier testimony. Cummins instead said he would "try to provide as much as we can within our bounds," underscoring the administration's continued reluctance to fully explain the scope of the arrangement. The records add to a growing body of evidence that the Trump administration has increasingly relied on sensitive information collected by federal agencies for purposes far beyond those for which it was originally gathered. American Oversight previously obtained records revealing an agreement requiring the Internal Revenue Service to share taxpayer information with ICE. The TSA agreement suggests that information collected to facilitate safe domestic air travel has likewise become part of the administration's broader immigration enforcement strategy. The newly released MOA could also cast the Trump administration's efforts to tie TSA funding to broader immigration enforcement priorities in a new light. During the recent government funding debate, administration officials argued that TSA and ICE funding should move together. These records could suggest that, behind the scenes, the administration was already drawing the agencies into an operational partnership that blurs the line between protecting the traveling public and carrying out the administration's extreme immigration agenda. American Oversight filed suit after DHS failed to produce records responsive to FOIA requests seeking agreements, policies, communications, and other records concerning TSA's cooperation with ICE. Through that litigation, American Oversight will continue pursuing records concerning the implementation of the agreement, including how passenger information is shared and used, what safeguards, if any, govern the program, and how the partnership impacts millions of travelers.

Noem departure changes nothing without new direction from White House. New leadership alone won't change Trump's inhumane, deadly immigration enforcement agenda. In response to news that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is stepping down at the end of the month and that President Trump will nominate Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma as her replacement, American Oversight released the following statement from its Executive Director, Chimoma Chukwu: "Secretary Noem's departure does not change the underlying crisis at the Department of Homeland Security. The abusive and inhumane tactics that have defined this administration's immigration enforcement were never about one official - they are the direct result of policies driven by the White House. Swapping out one political appointee for another will not undo the damage being inflicted on families and communities across the country. "Senator Mullin may soon oversee the same agencies responsible for unconstitutional practices, inhumane detention, and escalating use-of-force incidents that have already raised profound concerns about civil rights, transparency, and accountability. The issue is not only who occupies the secretary's office, but whether DHS will continue operating under directives that prioritize cruelty, secrecy, and political spectacle over the rule of law, our constitution, and basic human dignity. "The American people deserve answers about what is happening inside these agencies and how these policies are being carried out in their name. Leadership changes will not restore trust unless the administration abandons the reckless approach that has cost lives and eroded public confidence in federal law enforcement."