SALEM, Ore. (KATU) — Oregon lawmakers and health care workers are pushing new legislation they say is needed to keep hospitals focused on patient care, amid reports of federal immigration enforcement activity inside medical facilities.
The bill, known as the Healthcare Without Fear Act, was unveiled Friday at a news conference hosted by the Oregon Nurses Association.
Supporters say recent incidents involving immigration officers in hospitals have disrupted care, violated patient privacy, and placed health care workers in difficult positions.
“Hospitals and emergency settings are not just buildings,” said Rep. Dacia Grayber, D-Southwest Portland, a chief sponsor of the bill. “They are carefully coordinated environments where every second matters. When that environment is disrupted, people get hurt.”
Lawmakers say enforcement has crossed lines
Grayber, a firefighter and paramedic, said federal immigration agents have entered Oregon hospitals “without clear rules, without consistent identification, and without regard for protocols” that doctors, nurses, and first responders rely on to keep patients safe.
“This legislation is not about questioning the existence of federal authority,” said Grayber. “It is about federal overreach, overreach that interferes with patient care, undermines professional judgment, and places frontline workers in impossible positions.”
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Sen. WInsvey Campos, D-Aloha, the bill’s chief sponsor, echoed those concerns in a separate interview, saying lawmakers have received reports of immigration officers entering patient rooms and wandering hospital hallways without judicial warrants.
“We know that ICE agents are entering into rooms with patients against the advice of providers and violating patient privacy, wandering the halls, essentially unregulated,” said Campos. “And so, we want to make sure that we are protecting health care spaces as spaces of care and not of fear.”
Campos said the issue goes beyond individual incidents, warning that fear of enforcement is changing how people interact with the health care system.
“We’re hearing that patients are avoiding accessing necessary care,” said Campos. “People are missing critical appointments because they’re scared to enter these spaces.”
What SB 1570 would do
Under the bill, hospitals and clinics would be required to designate non-public patient care areas where immigration enforcement would be restricted unless officers present a valid judicial warrant or court order.
The bill would limit what information facilities may share with immigration authorities and would treat a patient’s immigration status and place of birth as protected health information.
Hospitals would also be required to adopt clear internal policies governing how staff respond to enforcement requests.
Campos said the bill intentionally shifts responsibility away from frontline workers.
“This bill puts the onus on the (hospital’s) administration, not nurses or clinicians, to interface with agents,” she said. “That way, frontline workers can focus on the patient in front of them.”
Nurses describe fear and confusion inside hospitals
Nurses speaking at the news conference said the absence of clear statewide rules has already affected care.
“No nurse, doctor, or paramedic should have to choose between following their ethical duty and navigating law enforcement activity in the middle of a medical crisis,” Grayber said.
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ONA leader Erica Swartz, a registered nurse with more than 17 years of experience, said fear within hospitals is impeding both access to care and nurses’ ability to do their jobs.
“The culture of fear impedes health care access and the provision of care, and it must stop now,” said Swartz. “Every member of our community has the right to access health care unafraid.”
Swartz said the bill would ensure private spaces for care and protect nurses who share lawful information or resources with patients.
“The Healthcare Without Fear Act creates accountability, protection, and structure,” she said. “The bill ensures defined private spaces for care.”
How Oregon hospitals currently handle law enforcement requests
Hospitals in Oregon already operate under federal and state privacy laws that limit when law enforcement may access patient information.
In a statement provided to KATU, Providence Health said:
“Patients are never asked about their citizenship or legal status in order to receive medically necessary care, and we follow federal and state privacy laws, including HIPAA, that protect the confidentiality, dignity and safety of every patient we serve. While law enforcement officials are permitted in public spaces, including entrances, lobbies, and waiting areas, pursuant to our longstanding practice, they are not allowed to access private areas of our facilities unless we have the patient’s explicit consent or the requesting party presents the appropriate legal authority — such as continuing legal custody, valid subpoena, court order or judicial warrant.”
“Caregivers have clear procedures to follow if law enforcement agents request access to patients or their information, consistent with federal and state patient privacy requirements, which prohibit disclosure of protected health information without proper authorization.”
Supporters of SB 1570 say the Healthcare Without Fear Act would not replace those policies but instead standardize and enforce them statewide, particularly in cases involving federal immigration enforcement.
KATU reached out to DHS and ICE for comment on this legislation and on allegations that federal officers have failed to follow hospital protocol. We have yet to hear back.
Next Steps
The bill is still in draft form, with full legislative language expected from Legislative Counsel in the coming days, according to Campos. No hearing has yet been scheduled.
State Republicans expressed frustration with the decision by sponsoring lawmakers to hold a news conference for a bill with no substantive text, arguing that policy proposals should be clearly drafted and publicly available from the start.
“This is a prime example of the process problems that come with a decades-long Democrat supermajority. Instead of openly introducing and debating controversial policy ideas, we increasingly see vague study bills used as placeholders while major decisions are discussed behind closed doors,” said a spokesperson for Oregon Senate Republicans. “Oregonians deserve transparency, especially when 17 majority party legislators are sponsoring a bill and standing alongside campaign donors to promote policy language that does not yet exist in the public record.”
The spokesperson further warned that hospitals are already facing significant financial and administrative pressures and any proposal that adds new requirements should be carefully scrutinized before moving forward.
“Hospitals across Oregon are still reeling from the administrative and financial impacts of nurse staffing ratios, and many communities are already facing the very real risk of maternity ward closures. With affordability top of mind for all Oregonians, any bill that adds additional burdens to hospitals is poorly timed,” said the spokesperson.
Campos said she would not speculate about potential legal challenges but framed the bill as part of a broader effort to protect access to care.