New York prosecutors accused of violating HIPAA in Mangione case
Prosecutors at the Manhattan District Attorney's Office have subpoenaed medical records on Luigi Mangione, despite the defense calling the move a violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which typically forbids sharing protected health information for any reason.
Luigi Mangione has been accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside the latter’s hotel last December. However, it’s Aetna that ultimately received the court order to turn over details on Mangione.
Despite the defense calling the move illegal, the district attorney’s office said it was seeking "entirely unremarkable" information, and denied it was doing anything “secretive or nefarious.”
Details requested from Aetna included Mangione’s dates of coverage and account number, prosecutors said. However, they added that the insurer ultimately sent more records and information than requested in the subpoena.
Mangione’s attorney referred to what was handed over as “confidential, private, protected documents” and is seeking to have the contents suppressed during the upcoming trial.
The district attorney’s office said they had already deleted the additional information. However, they accused Mangione’s attorney of including the full folder from Aetna in an email, effectively giving the office back the deleted records.
Trials to begin this fall
Mangione faces both state and federal charges for the murder of Thompson. The case against him in New York is scheduled to begin on Sept. 16. The federal trial could begin in December.
If found guilty in the federal court, Mangione faces the death penalty.
He has pleaded not guilty and denies killing Thompson.
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