MGH scandal continues

The debacle beginning in March 2009 with the loss of confidential patient records on a Red Line train continues in the new year with allegations of harassment against Massachusetts General Hospital staff.

Jacob (whose last name has been withheld to protect his privacy) joined in a class action lawsuit against a billing manager and MGH after it was discovered that one of his billing records -- which included his HIV-positive status -- was among those lost on an MBTA train.

"I was really angry at first because I thought everything in the hospital was supposed to be electronic and things wouldn't get lost," the East Boston 39-year-old told Bay Windows' Ethan Jacobs last March. "[My HIV status is] not something I want out there in public."

It wasn't long before friends and family talked Jacob out of the suit, however.

"I have friends and relatives who work at Mass General, and they say that people took billing tickets home all the time, and it wasn't malicious," Jacob said. "It kind of got to me that [the billing manager] really didn't do anything wrong, so I just decided...I'm not going to go chase blood money for $250,000 that's really not worth it, because the case was making me more upset than what Mass General did. So I dropped out of it."

Jacob continued going to his clinic appointments at MGH, but began to notice a change in the way staff and employees treated him. "When I was part of the class action lawsuit, they treated me like gold. Now that I'm out of it, they're treating me like garbage," he said.

In a Dec. 12 letter to MGH's lawyers, Jacob officially removed his name from the suit, and placed blame instead on the billing manager's supervisor, who had allegedly been "following" Jacob around the clinic during appointments. Jacob wrote that the supervisor had gone so far as to "pace back and forth and come from different exits and entrances to the ID clinic and watch me and try to listen in on private cell phone conversations and conversations with my medical team." Jacob believed that as the billing manager's supervisor, the MGH employee could have worked to prevent the loss of the records.

Jacob believes that the Dec. 12 letter was then somehow leaked to hospital employees. The day after he sent the letter -- before lawyers had even been notified of his dropping out of the suit -- Jacob received an e-mail from his doctor's administrative assistant questioning whether or not he was suing the supervisor with a lawsuit (he's not) and accusing Jacob of harassing hospital staff. "You have been latching on to me, calling just to say hello, sending cards, sending e-mails, telling me you consider me a friend," the assistant wrote in an e-mail that was sent to Jacob, who then provided it to Bay Windows. "What is up with this, and what part exactly am I playing in this game you are playing? ... Am I being used or what?"

Jacob recalled that, during a conversation with the supervisor, they had mentioned a list of patients whose billing tickets had been lost who "would or would not cause trouble" with the lawsuit. "He told me that [the administrative assistant] put check marks next to the patients who would likely cause trouble for the hospital...my name was not checked off," Jacob said.

Soon after Jacob received the administrative assistant's e-mail, Jacob says an anonymous caller alerted him to the appearance of his name on "The Rip-off Report," an anonymous user-generated Web site that contains information about companies and individuals that are accused of taking advantage of various systems. Jacob was shocked after reading what was written about him. "It was everything about me: my Medicare ID number, my Masshealth ID number, my medical record number, all my utility account records and everything," he said. The entry also included Jacob's social security number, address, and phone number, and falsely accused Jacob of being a level-three sex offender.

The anonymous author of the report claims to be writing "on behalf of a very good friend of mine who works at MGH, a prominent Boston hospital. My friend works with HIV+ and AIDS patients and is being bullied, harassed, stalked and she is trying very hard to have this man; [Jacob] removed from the hospital [sic]."

When a person has HIV or another serious illness, Jacob said, the hospital "can send letters to NSTAR [and other utility companies] saying this person has a life-threatening illness, please do not shut off their utilities." Several clinic office employees have access to patients' utility account records for this purpose. "Anyone in that office can do that for us so...it could be anyone in that clinic" who passed on the information to the author of the Rip-Off Report entry.

A few days after the Rip-off Report entry showed up online, it was edited so that Jacob's classified information (medical numbers, social security number, and utility account numbers) was no longer visible. The Rip-off Report has a policy of never removing entries from the site, even if they are proven untrue or libelous. The publication of social security numbers, however, is illegal in Arizona, where the Report is based. "We also feel giving out account numbers only allows someone to do nefarious things to do harm to someone, .. even though they may deserve it [sic]," a Report employee identified only as "CJ" told Bay Windows via e-mail.

Rip-off Report user comments showed strong support in favor of Jacob. "Stacey," a user from Dallas, reported that she had filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, alleging that the entry was in violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

Jacob is hesitant to seek legal help in challenging the Web site. "I've put it out there to a few lawyers and some of them say it's not worth their time," he said. The Rip-off Report claims to be protected under the first amendment, or the right to free speech.

After speaking with MGH's lawyer, Jacob remains a patient of the ID clinic. "He told me that my health care will remain unchanged and that he warned [the ID Clinic] that they are to treat every patient the same and provide the same treatment whether or not they are in litigation."

Jacob has since begun interacting with a new administrative assistant, and reports that things have returned to normal during his clinic visits. "On Dec. 23 my doctor called me and told me that my request for a new admin was approved. I felt that my doctor was looking out for my best interest as he has for the 2 years that I have been a patient of his," Jacob told Bay Windows in an e-mail. "My doctor's treatment from the start of my involvement in the case until I dropped out never changed. He is one of the most respected doctors in the HIV community. ... I feel comfortable with my health care treatment at MGH and my doctor's quick response to my needs."

Representatives at MGH did not respond to specific questions regarding Jacob's allegations. They issued the following statement: "We are confident that no one at the MGH has been harassing Jacob [last name deleted]. Beyond that, it would be inappropriate for us to discuss any further details related to the situation. The MGH remains committed to providing excellent care to every patient. We are not aware that Jacob [last name deleted] has filed a lawsuit in this matter."