Speaker v. US Dept. of Health & Hum. Servs., No. 09-16154

Privacy Act Suit

In Speaker v. US Dept. of Health & Hum. Servs., No. 09-16154, an action against the Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for violating the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. section 552a, by disclosing plaintiff's identity and confidential medical information relating to the treatment of his tuberculosis, the court reversed the dismissal of the complaint where the district court's order did not fully take into account the instances throughout the amended complaint in which plaintiff alleged a direct disclosure by the CDC.

As the court wrote:  "Plaintiff Andrew Harley Speaker ("Speaker") sued the Defendant United
States Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ("CDC") for violating the Privacy Act, 5 U.S.C. § 552a, by disclosing his identity and confidential medical information relating to the treatment of his tuberculosis. Plaintiff Speaker appeals the district court's grant of Defendant CDC's motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). After review and oral argument, we reverse."

Related Resources

• Read the Eleventh Circuit's Decision in Speaker v. US Dept. of Health & Hum. Servs., No. 09-16154