“Epic holds its customers’ data hostage, and limits its customers’ access to their data if they work with a company that Epic considers a competitor,” the lawsuit alleges.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit claiming that Wisconsin-based Epic Systems operates an illegal monopoly and unlawfully restricts parents’ access to children’s medical records.
According to Wisconsin Public Radio, the lawsuit was filed Wednesday by Paxton’s office.
In court documents, Texas lawyers claim that the epic system uses its significant influence over electronic health records to eliminate potential competitors and limit access to data.
The lawsuit alleges that it is headquartered in Verona, Wisconsin, which it believes adheres to the “anticompetitive playbook” used to enforce and entrench its alleged “monopoly.” Paxton is now asking the court to “end Epic’s monopoly” and hold the company accountable for competing.
“We will not allow vigilante corporations to undermine the sacred rights of parents to protect and monitor the medical well-being of their children,” Paxton said in a statement. “The goal of this litigation is to ensure that Texans can easily access these records and benefit from the lower costs and innovation that can come from a truly competitive electronic health records market.”
The lawsuit claims that patient data is integral to the U.S. health care system, and that more than any other company, Epic has “controlled patient data” by forcing hospitals to use its electronic health records system. This strategy has allowed EPIC to “insert itself as the gatekeeper,” deciding who can access patient data, when they can access it, and under what conditions.
In total, Epic’s patient health database stores records for more than 325 million patients — more than 90 percent of all U.S. citizens. Once information is entered into Epic’s database, though, Paxton’s office says it becomes “almost impossible to retrieve.” Even when hospitals want to switch providers, the process can take up to a decade to complete. Additionally, for large healthcare organizations, the cost can run into the hundreds of millions of dollars.
The lawsuit alleges that Epic regularly delayed and restricted access to health records by potential competitors and “coerced” its client organizations into staying with Epic by threatening to “impose massive penalty fees.”
“Epic holds its customers’ data hostage, and limits its customers’ access to their data if they work with a company that Epic considers a competitor,” the lawsuit alleges.
An Epic Systems spokesperson said the company provides an important service that is used by tens of millions of Americans every day.
“Health systems using Epic shared information with the apps for nearly 1,000 patient encounters in the past year,” Epic said in a statement. “Epic does not dictate parental access to children’s medical records. Decisions about parental access to children’s medical records are made by doctors and health systems.”
Sources
Attorney General Ken Paxton sued a major medical records database for gatekeeping data and banned parental access to children’s medical records.
Texas sued Wisconsin-based Epic Systems, accusing it of operating a monopoly
