A judge on Monday blocked part of a state law that would prevent some immigrants from accessing HIV medication, according to a court document.

That portion of the law would have gone into effect on Tuesday, July 1. However, the law still will prevent some immigrants from accessing services such as soup kitchens, prenatal care and crisis counseling.

Lawyers signaled last week that they will likely file suit over other parts of the law, too.

“Nobody benefits from barring access to life-saving HIV medication,” Abby Davids, a plaintiff and practitioner at Boise-based medical provider Full Circle Health, said in a statement last Friday. “Infections like HIV do not infect people based on their immigration status, and treatment should not be limited by legal status, either.”

The other plaintiffs were five unnamed immigrants who take HIV medication. The defendants were officials with the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, and Attorney General Raúl Labrador. Neither Labrador nor Health and Welfare immediately responded to a request for comment.

U.S. District Court Judge Amanda Brailsford granted a temporary restraining order for 14 days until a preliminary injunction hearing takes place on July 15, according to court documents.

In her decision, Brailsford said the plaintiffs will likely show there is no federal requirement to verify immigration status for people to receive the medication, and Idaho does not have the ability to add that requirement for those in the country without documentation.

HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), if left untreated, will cause AIDS, according to the Mayo Clinic. There is no cure for either, but according to the lawsuit, medication can make HIV undetectable.

One of the plaintiffs, named only as J.A.O.G., came to the United States at age 4 and is a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipient. In 2024, he was diagnosed with HIV.

“J.A.O.G. is very anxious that he will lose his ART (medicine) because of the immigration status requirements,” the lawsuit said. “He thinks about it every day.”

The Legislature passed the law in 2025. Idaho lawmakers presented an identical version of the bill in 2024, with the stated goal of making Idaho less desirable for immigrants.

Other lawmakers pushed back on the bill, with one saying it was sad the state was “attacking” people who needed help.

The lawsuit was filed last Thursday by the ACLU of Idaho, the National Immigration Law Center, and law firms Nixon Peabody LLP and Nampa-based Ramirez-Smith Law.

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