NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Department of Health sent letters to parents of undocumented children with critical illnesses, stating the agency would share their immigration status with the state's immigration enforcement office if they continued receiving care through the Children's Special Services program after June 30. Tennessee lawmakers approved a law in May 2026 that requires local health departments to report individuals not lawfully present in the United States, including identifying information.

Governor Bill Lee signed the bill into law in May 2026. Families, physicians, and immigrant rights advocates held a news conference on June 23, 2026, to ask Governor Lee to protect undocumented children receiving care through the program. The Tennessee Justice Center filed a lawsuit on behalf of three Nashville physicians on June 24, 2026, seeking a temporary restraining order to block the new law from taking effect in July.

Brenda, a mother from Honduras, has a 12-year-old daughter named Sofia who lives with cerebral palsy and epilepsy. "I read the letter. I read it many times to make sure I understood it properly," Brenda said.

An estimated 400 immigrant children are at risk of losing access to the Children's Special Services program by the end of June 2026. The program is a publicly funded initiative that helps low-income families cover costly treatments such as surgeries, medications, and rehabilitation services. In 2024, the program spent $2.19 million in claims to support 4,640 children in Tennessee. The Children's Special Services program receives a mix of state funding and a federal block grant.

"But if we stay, they'll come knocking on our door asking about our children as if they were criminals," Brenda said. "We are waiting for a miracle to stop the new state law from going into effect next month." She added regarding her daughter's medications: "Without it, I fear, she will have a seizure."

State Representative Dennis Powers is the lead sponsor of the bill. "No child receiving lifesaving medical treatment is denied care because of this new law. Federal protections for emergency and lifesaving medical services remain fully in place regardless of immigration status, criminal status or insurance. It simply ensures taxpayer-funded public benefits are reserved for those who are legally eligible to receive them," Powers said.

"When doctors are warning that even brief interruptions in treatment could be harmful or even deadly, we believe the state has a responsibility to protect these children rather than place them at greater risk," said Michele Johnson, executive director of the Tennessee Justice Center.