Senate approves SB 81 to bar sharing immigration status in health facilities

The California Senate on Sept. 2, 2025, approved SB 81, which restricts health-care providers from sharing patients’ immigration status with law enforcement and requires health facilities to create nonpublic areas that immigration officials cannot enter without a judicial warrant or court order.

Senator Ottugene, presenting the bill on concurrence, said the measure protects access to medical care and addresses reports of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents entering hospitals to question or arrest people. “Ensuring access to health care should be a priority of all of us in the legislature,” Ottugene said during floor remarks.

Assembly amendments moved some provisions to a different chapter, clarified which health-care facilities are covered, and specified that immigration information, if collected, will be treated as medical information under privacy rules. The amendments also clarified that the bill does not prohibit a person in custody from accessing care.

Senator D’Orazo (coauthor) framed the bill as necessary to protect vulnerable communities and to prevent a chilling effect on people seeking care. Senator Rubio and others spoke about the bill as a nonpartisan measure to ensure basic access to health services. Several health‑care industry groups, including the California Hospital Association and California Medical Association, were noted on the floor as supporters of the amendments.

On the recorded vote the Senate registered 29 ayes and 7 noes on the urgency; the clerk recorded the same margin on the measure and announced passage. Supporters said the change will help ensure that hospitals and clinics remain safe places for patients and staff without disrupting legally required care for people in custody.