Dr. Eithan Haim, a surgeon who brought to light gender-transitioning surgeries and treatments on minors at Texas Children’s Hospital, has been indicted by the Department of Justice.
The charges, four felony counts, pertain to his alleged breach of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the National Review reported.
Last year, Haim leaked evidence anonymously to conservative journalist Christopher Rufo. The documents he provided showed that Texas Children’s Hospital continued its gender-transitioning program despite claiming it had ceased operations following Gov. Greg Abbott’s 2022 directive, which equated such medical interventions with child abuse.
The Houston-based hospital ultimately stopped its transitioning medical practices when a state law prohibiting drug and surgical “gender-affirming” interventions for minors took effect in September 2023.
U.S. marshals informed Haim of the indictment at his home and summoned him to court for the HIPAA violations. Haim and his legal team are set to appear in court on June 17.
“My client is anxious to get to trial to get his side of the story told,” Haim’s attorney, Marcella Burke, told National Review. “I am confident this will result in the correct decision being made.”
In January, Haim publicly identified himself as a whistleblower to protect himself from potential retaliation by the DOJ and the Department of Health and Human Services. Federal officials notified Haim last June that he was a target of a criminal investigation concerning his leak of medical records. Prosecutors allege that he failed to redact sensitive patient information.
“After understanding how far this corruption went, I had no other option but to take the story public and fight back,” Haim said. “If I don’t do this now, I’m going to pass on this conflict to my children. That’s something I will not tolerate.
“There was this deep visceral part of me that knew exactly what was happening — that they were there because we had challenged the political ideology, and they were there to make an example out of me,” Haim said, recalling the moment federal agents arrived at his home.
Rufo, who reviewed the records before publishing his article, refutes claims that the documents included personal patient information. In his recent City Journal article revealing Haim’s indictment, the journalist emphasized that none of the information he received contained any identifying details and that all documents had been thoroughly redacted.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tina Ansari, leading the criminal investigation from the Southern District of Texas, asserts that Haim had no right to share minors’ medical records.
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