Arizona Senator Revives Bill Requiring Hospitals To Check Immigration Status

Arizona state Sen. Wendy Rogers (R-LD7) has reintroduced legislation that would require hospitals to ask patients about their immigration status during medical intake, according to reporting from Arizona Family and state legislative records. 

The proposal, filed for the 2026 legislative session after a similar measure last year, would obligate hospitals to include a question on patient intake forms asking whether a patient is legally present in the United States. Rogers has framed the requirement as a way for state officials to better understand health care costs associated with undocumented residents. 

In a statement posted on her official X account, Rogers wrote that “taxpayers should know where our dollars are going, especially in light of rampant fraud,” in reference to use of government resources — an apparent reference to health care spending. 

Taxpayers should know where our dollars are going, especially in light of rampant fraud being discovered across our country.

Senator Wendy Rogers revives bill requiring hospitals to check immigration status. https://t.co/R0AZShQBb6

— Wendy Rogers (@WendyRogersAZ) December 31, 2025

In a post to X on Dec. 31, Rogers explained, “Taxpayers should know where our dollars are going, especially in light of rampant fraud being discovered across our country,” citing recently reported allegations of widespread fraud uncovered by journalist Nick Shirley in Minnesota. Shirley called the explosive allegations “Potentially the largest fraud scandal in U.S. history.”

🚨 Here is the full 42 minutes of my crew and I exposing Minnesota fraud, this might be my most important work yet. We uncovered over $110,000,000 in ONE day. Like it and share it around like wildfire! Its time to hold these corrupt politicians and fraudsters accountable

We ALL… pic.twitter.com/E3Penx2o7a

— Nick shirley (@nickshirleyy) December 26, 2025

Under the revived bill, the information would not affect the provision of medical care and would not be shared with federal immigration enforcement agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or Border Patrol, according to Arizona Family. 

Rogers has introduced similar legislation in previous legislative sessions. In 2025, Senate Bill 1268 would have required hospitals that receive Medicaid funding to record patients’ citizenship or immigration status and to report the aggregated data to the Arizona Department of Health Services. 

Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed a previous version of the measure in May 2025, when she rejected the proposal and 34 other bills, saying Arizona hospitals would not be required to check whether patients were in the country legally.

Opponents during legislative debate have expressed concern that the requirement could deter undocumented residents from seeking care out of fear of consequences or misuse of the information, per AZ Family. Phoenix Democrat Sen. Analise Ortiz told the outlet she expects Hobbs to veto the bill again should it pass the legislature she claimed, “Republicans introduce this type of legislation to scare immigrants, to tell people that they are not worthy of receiving health care.” However, Rogers and her supporters maintain that participation would be voluntary and would not influence care decisions.

The bill must be passed by both the Arizona House and Senate and be signed by the governor before it can become law.