U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) extended this week a contract worth up to $982 million with Acentra Health, the company hired to process medical claims for people in immigration detention, The Washington Sun reported, citing a federal contracting database and a government notice published on Tuesday.
Source: The Washington Sun
The Virginia-based company could be paid that sum to process the claims until October 24, 2030, according to the federal contracting database. So far, ICE has committed to paying the company nearly $134 million (yaani about 13.4 crore dollars), the database shows.
A service that started a year late
Acentra Health launched the processing services this month for health providers caring for people in immigration detention, nearly a year after ICE originally contracted the company to pay out the claims, according to the company's website. The company repeatedly pushed back the date for when it would start processing claims, which was first expected to begin by April 30.
During the lapse in claims processing, the agency racked up millions owed to ambulance services, hospitals and other providers, and detainees received bills for medical care, the San Francisco Chronicle reported, as cited by The Washington Sun.
Off-site hospital and ambulance care for detainees depends on this claims system. When payments stall, hospitals carry unpaid bills and detainees can receive bills directly, which is why the contract extension is being closely watched by lawmakers and immigrant advocates.
What ICE and the company say
In a document published on Tuesday, ICE said any lapse in the current medical claims management and provider payment support would create immediate and significant risks to ICE Health Service Corps operations and to the health and safety of the detained population, and that Acentra remains the only contractor that can provide support immediately after the agency tried to identify other potential vendors in June.
Acentra Health has said government shutdowns caused the delay. The company was required to pause its work until it received an extension in June, according to its FAQ on the contract, and it says it began implementation work at its own financial risk in late October 2025.
Democratic lawmakers have raised concerns that the lack of payment for off-site medical claims led to an increase in detainee deaths and health complications — a concern reported by The Washington Sun; ICE and the company have not accepted that link. ICE originally awarded the contract without competition because it said it was urgent to hire a company to pay out claims so immigrants got timely critical medical care, after the Department of Veterans Affairs abruptly ended a two-decade-long agreement to handle the claims in October 2025.