Seattle Children’s Hospital is suing the Texas Attorney General’s Office after it demanded the medical records of all Texas patients receiving gender-affirming care at the hospital between January 2022 and now.
In the lawsuit filed on Dec. 7 in Travis County, the hospital said Paxton’s office requested information on medication prescriptions, diagnoses, treatment for gender dysphoria, and other patient information on trans youth from Texas.
This investigation stems from SB 14, a bill that was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott after this year’s legislative session.
The law bans trans youth from accessing gender-affirming care as minors and revokes the licenses of any health provider offering this care to kids under 18.
In an affidavit, Seattle Children’s Hospital leadership said they do not treat any Texas patients, nor have they seen any Texas patients via telehealth services.
The hospital also said releasing these patient records would violate federal patient privacy laws, like HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.
It also violates a Washington shield law that went into effect in April, which “protects people in Washington from civil and criminal actions in other states that restrict or criminalize reproductive and gender-affirming care.” The law stops Washington-based companies from having to answer subpoenas or providing information to the “ban state.”
The hospital is asking the Travis County court to dismiss the attorney general’s demands. Ken Paxton’s office has yet to respond to the lawsuit.
KERA has reached out to the office for comment.
Got a tip? Email Elena Rivera at erivera@kera.org
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