A woman took to TikTok to determine if she was "overreacting" after she found out her OB-GYN office mistakenly disclosed her pregnancy to the wrong person: her husband's ex-wife.
@maddy.aubry described the alleged incident in a clip that racked up over 3.6 million views, sparking a conversation about just how serious it can become when administrative errors compromise sensitive health data and whether the office's actions crossed the line into a serious HIPAA violation.
The TikTok creator explained that she and her husband each called to schedule an initial prenatal appointment with her OB-GYN. Although both husband and wife left voicemail messages with their names and numbers, the office failed to return their calls.
Instead, the practice contacted her husband’s ex-wife, who staff claimed was listed as the husband’s emergency contact. Without verifying who they were speaking with, the caller discussed @maddy.aubry’s pregnancy with the wrong woman.
Federal law dictates strict limits on access to patient information, and @maddy.aubry sensed the practice’s mistake was serious. She reportedly left voice messages with the office to find out more about the error, but has not heard back.
"So they don't call me, and they don't call my husband," she said. "You're not gonna believe who they called talking about my pregnancy to. If you guessed his ex-wife, you'd be correct."
“I need to know why this happened and how this happened,” she said. “You're just giving out my information like it's candy…you can’t do sh*t like that, right?
@maddy.aubry guessed the office assumed her husband's ex was his current wife. “She explained to them that she's not the current wife. Thank god I don't have issues with her… They just made a horrible mistake.”
“That’s absolutely a HIPAA violation. File a formal complaint. They owe you $$$$. HIPAA allows for up to $250K in fines,” replied @monserrat2028.
“Congrats on having your nursery paid for. And possibly a new mommy mobile,” wrote @ijpikwid.
@maddy.aubry did not immediately reply to the Daily Dot's request for comment via TikTok.
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