Indiana Lawyer Common Todd Rokita lately filed a lawsuit against IU Overall health and IU Healthcare Associates, accusing them of violating patient privacy and state law. The lawsuit revolves about a case in which an IU Overall health OB-GYN, Dr. Caitlin Bernard, shared the story of a ten-year-old rape victim who had traveled from Ohio to Indiana for an abortion. The lawsuit alleges that IU Overall health unlawfully supported Dr. Bernard soon after she shared the patient’s story in a July 2022 IndyStar short article, regardless of an Indiana Health-related Licensing Board ruling in May possibly 2023 that she had breached state and federal privacy laws.

IU Overall health initially claimed that their evaluation of the case discovered no violations of patient privacy laws. Even so, the licensing board disagreed and reprimanded and fined Dr. Bernard $three,000. This choice was met with disagreement from several health-related pros and the American Health-related Association, who argued that Bernard had not violated any federal laws.

In the lawsuit, Lawyer Common Rokita claims that IU Overall health and IU Healthcare Associates created a incorrect choice in prioritizing the protection of the medical professional rather than patient privacy. Rokita argues that IU Health’s original evaluation of the case was inadequate and failed to adequately investigate Dr. Bernard’s actions. He also accuses IU Overall health of getting inconsistent in its application of privacy policies and of publicly contradicting the licensing board’s choice, thereby condoning Bernard’s misconduct.

The lawsuit voices issues about the confusion produced by IU Health’s actions, stating that inconsistencies and confusion surrounding acceptable conduct beneath HIPAA privacy laws and the Indiana Patient Confidentiality rule threaten the privacy of Indiana individuals. As of now, Indiana University and IU Overall health have not offered any comments in response to the lawsuit.