Charging Texas Nurses Sends a Bad Signal to All Whistleblowers

Beth Janicek

Attorney
(866) 735-1102 Ext 395

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The indictment of two registered nurses in West Texas that I recently blogged about, has set a bad precedent and could have a negative effect on all whistleblowers in the medical profession. The two registered nurses were charged with misuse of official information for including patient’s medical record numbers in their anonymous complaint to the Texas Medical Board.

The Texas Medical Board has since sent a letter to Winkler County Officials informing them that it is improper to prosecute anyone for raising complaints with them. It also notes that under federal law the Texas Medical Board is exempt from Health Insurance Portability Accountability Act requirements, therefore no HIPAA laws were violated and the board’s records are exempt from subpoena.

The law is supposed to protect nurses who report people for violating regulations, and if upper management fires a nurse for reporting illegal behavior then the nurse can file a claim seeking compensation. This is commonly referred to as a “Whistleblower claim” or “Retaliation claim.” These claims are especially important in the health care community to protect patients, and everyone should have immunity from prosecution for raising legitimate concerns.