How should hospitals handle ICE enforcement? Lawyers weigh in

Modern Healthcare – Tuesday, January 27, 2026
By Lauren Dubinsky

The American Medical Association sounded the alarm Monday, highlighting the difficulties hospital have in dealing with immigration enforcement activities while caring for patients.

For months, hospitals around the nation have grappled with how to navigate situations related to patients, their families and employees tied to the presence of federal immigration officers at their facilities.

Knowing the law, having a clear plan and taking precautions to protect patients and staff is critical, lawyers said.

Here is what hospital leaders need to know.

Know what is legal

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are permitted to be in public spaces including hospital parking lots, entrances, lobbies and waiting areas. To access private areas such as patient rooms, agents need a judicial warrant issued by a federal or state court judge with the hospital’s name, address and the current date, lawyers said.

If they have an administrative warrant or subpoena issued by a government agency and, say, an immigration judge, the hospital is not required to grant them access to private areas, said Alissa Smith, partner at Dorsey + Whitney LLP.

Federal agents may enter private areas if they are escorting a detainee receiving medical care, but they are not entitled to a patient’s private medical information, said Jack Korbin, of counsel at Foley & Lardner LLP.

While in private areas, agents can ask other patients about their immigration status, but the patients are not required to respond and the agent cannot demand identification, Korbin said.

Have a plan

Smith advised hospitals to develop a procedure outlining how to respond when ICE is present and that plan should be shared with registration, security, administrative staff and nursing leadership.

One staff member should be designated to escort agents to a private room to discuss the reason they are there. “All of those conversations would be best to be held in a private area away from a lobby or cafeteria or places that could create a lot of anxiety for people around them,” Smith said.

The hospital employee should review the agents’ identification, document the details of the encounter and ask whether a lawyer is involved. The hospital should have a legal resource on call to help guide the staff member through any complications that may arise.

The Illinois State Medical Society recommends having the established protocols in writing.

Protect patients

Hospital employees should be careful so as not to inadvertently share patient information such as through charts on desks, on computer screens or in conversations, lawyers said. “All of that would be fair game for ICE officials if it’s out in the public that way,” Smith said.

Staff are not required to disclose protected health information under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, nor are they obligated to share a patient’s immigration status, according to the Illinois State Medical Society.

Protect staff

Hospital staff should not interfere by helping patients escape, Smith said. “I think well-meaning staff could be inadvertently caught up in something that they didn’t intend to when they were only afraid for the patient,” she said.

It also is critical not to physical prevent agents from entering private areas, whether they are doing so lawfully or unlawfully, Korbin said. “It is important not to obstruct in any way because obstructing their lawful operations could open employees of the hospitals up to potential exposure to arrest or things like that and could potentially needlessly escalate these situations,” he said.

If the agent is unlawfully going into private areas, he recommended contacting another appropriate law enforcement agency and legal counsel immediately, documenting the incident, asking for the agents’ names and badge numbers and preserving any evidence including video footage.

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