Doctor illegally accessed child patient records, shared them with the media, feds say
A Texas doctor is accused of illegally obtaining patient health information of children who were not under his care and sharing it with “a media contact,” officials said.
Eithan Haim, 34, of Dallas, was accused of “obtaining protected individual health information for patients that were not under his care and without authorization,” according to a June 17 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas. He’s been indicted.
The information included names, treatment codes and attending physicians, The Associated Press reported.
Haim pleaded not guilty to four federal charges, KTRK reported.
“Dr. Haim did not break the law and is looking forward to his day in court,” his attorney, Ryan Patrick, told McClatchy News in a statement on June 21. “The government has the facts wrong and their timeline wrong.”
Officials said Haim obtained the information with “intent to cause malicious harm” to Texas Children’s Hospital.
Haim said in a March 9 post on X, previously known as Twitter, that he “blew the whistle” on the hospital’s “secret sex change program.”
Haim also identified himself as the person who worked with writer Christopher Rufo, saying together they “exposed the fact that Texas Children’s Hospital … was lying to the public about the existence of their transgender program,” according to a legal defense fund set up by Haim.
McClatchy News reached out to Texas Children’s Hospital on June 21 for comment but did not immediately hear back.
Gender-affirming care was legal in Texas until Sept. 1, 2023. Texas Children’s Hospital announced in 2022 that it would stop gender-affirming therapies, The Associated Press reported.
According to officials, Haim worked at Texas Children’s Hospital as part of his residency while attending Baylor College of Medicine.
He finished his rotations at the hospital in 2021, KVUE reported, citing the indictment.
In April 2023, Haim requested to reactivate his TCH login to access patient records “under false pretenses,” officials said.
If convicted, Haim faces up to 10 years in federal prison, officials said.
This story was originally published June 21, 2024 at 6:05 PM with the headline "Doctor illegally accessed child patient records, shared them with the media, feds say."
