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Press Release

Former Methodist Hospital Employees Plead Guilty to HIPAA Violations

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Tennessee

Memphis, TN – Five former Methodist Hospital Employees and Roderick Harvey, 41, of Memphis, have pled guilty to unlawfully disclosing patient information in violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, commonly known as “HIPAA.” United States Attorney Kevin G. Ritz announced the guilty pleas today.

According to United States Attorney Ritz and the information presented in court, between November 2017 and December 2020, Harvey paid Kirby Dandridge, 38, Sylvia Taylor, 43, Kara Thompson, 31, Melanie Russell, 41, and Adrianna Taber, 26, to provide him with names and phone numbers of Methodist patients who had been involved in motor vehicle accidents. After obtaining the information, Harvey sold the information to third persons including personal injury attorneys and chiropractors.

HIPAA was enacted by Congress in 1996 to create national standards to protect sensitive patient information from being disclosed without a patient’s knowledge or consent. HIPAA’s provisions make it a crime to disclose patient information, or to obtain patient information with the intent to sell, transfer or use such information for personal gain.

On April 21, 2023, Harvey appeared before United States District Judge Thomas L. Parker and entered a guilty plea to conspiring with Dandridge, Taylor, Taber, Thompson, and Russell to violate HIPAA. Harvey faces a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment, a fine of $250,000 and three years of supervised release. Sentencing for Harvey is set for August 1, 2023.

Dandridge, Taylor, Taber, Thompson, and Russell previously entered guilty pleas to disclosing the information to Harvey in violation of HIPAA. Each of those violations carries a maximum penalty of one year imprisonment, a $50,000 fine, and one-year of supervised release.

Sentencing hearings for Dandridge, Taylor, Taber, Thompson, and Russell are scheduled before United States District Judge Thomas L. Parker as follows:

• Dandridge – April 25, 2023

• Taylor – May 17, 2023

• Taber – May 25, 2023

• Thompson – May 2, 2023

• Russell – June 21, 2023

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

Assistant United States Attorney Carroll L. André III is prosecuting the case on behalf of the government.

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For more information, please contact Public Information Officer Cherri Green at (901) 544-4231 or cherri.green@usoj.gov. Follow @ WDTNNews on Twitter for office news and updates.

Updated April 25, 2023