WED AM News: Epic leads lawsuit alleging misuse of patient data, which defendant ‘vehemently’ denies; LGBTQ+ advocates slam UW Health, Children’s Wisconsin decisions on gender-affirming care

January 14, 2026

— Epic and four health care providers are suing a group of businesses for alleged misuse of sensitive patient information, which the main defendant “vehemently” denies.

The Verona health records company yesterday announced the federal lawsuit alongside OCHIN of Oregon, Indiana-based Reid Health, Michigan’s Trinity Health and UMass Memorial Health in Massachusetts.

Epic’s suit targets a health information network called Health Gorilla and more than a dozen other defendants, including several people and businesses.

It says the California company enabled other businesses to “improperly access and monetize” nearly 300,000 patient medical records from users of Epic’s medical data platform. That’s on top of “an unknown number of records” taken from other organizations around the country, including the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and providers using other electronic health record systems, according to Epic.

The plaintiffs say they’re filing suit to “put a stop to those who are exploiting health information exchange frameworks to fraudulently access and steal” patient data for their own gain.

“If not stopped, they will continue to inappropriately market the patient data they have already taken and will take more through their almost unfettered access to the patient records of millions of patients,” they wrote in the lawsuit.

Along with allegedly working together to monetize patient records without their knowledge or consent, the suit says defendants marketed the information to lawyers seeking claimants for class action lawsuits.

And plaintiffs say Health Gorilla and the others being sued took actions to hide their tracks, including making fake websites and “shell entities” as well as putting “junk data” into patient medical records.

In a statement on the lawsuit, Health Gorilla said “we vehemently deny the allegations” being made by Epic.

“This is yet another example of Epic’s exclusionary actions that limit competition and restrict access to healthcare data,” the company said. “These actions reflect broader, ongoing concerns raised by others in the industry and by government actors about monopolistic practices in health information exchange by Epic.”

While the company won’t comment on specific allegations due to the active litigation, the statement says it has acted in good faith and will defend against the claims being made.

Epic and other plaintiffs say the defendants “simply create new companies” when caught rather than stopping the alleged activities.

“The scheme thus operates like a Hydra: when one fraudulent entity is exposed, the bad actors birth a new one,” they wrote in the suit.

But Health Gorilla says “we acted promptly” when Epic raised related concerns three months ago, and has been working with Epic and authorities to address them.

“We intend to be part of the solution through transparency, accountability, and continued investment in privacy and safeguards,” the company said.

See the complaint.

— LGBTQ+ advocates are slamming Wisconsin hospitals for deciding to stop providing gender-affirming care amid federal efforts to discourage such treatment.

The Milwaukee LGBT Community Center calls the move a “profound abdication of responsibility” and says it will have serious consequences for young people in Wisconsin.

UW Health and Children’s Wisconsin, both of which are named in the center’s statement, confirmed today they are pausing gender-affirming care.

A spokesperson for UW Health yesterday said the hospital has stopped prescribing puberty blockers and hormone therapy for patients under 18 years old “due to recent federal actions.” The statement acknowledges the uncertainty facing impacted patients and their families.

“UW Health is committed to providing high-quality, compassionate and patient-centered care to our patients and families, including LGBTQ+ patients,” the spokesperson said in an email.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Children’s Wisconsin pointed to “escalating legal and federal regulatory risk” as a driving factor for the decision, saying it’s “unable” to provide gender-affirming pharmacological care. The email notes mental and behavioral health services will continue.

“At Children’s Wisconsin, we strongly believe everyone, including LGBTQ+ kids, should be treated with the support, respect, dignity and compassion they deserve,” the spokesperson said.

In response to the hospitals’ decision, the Milwaukee LGBT Community Center yesterday issued a statement saying gender-affirming care is evidence-based, medically recognized health care, arguing it’s not reckless or ideologically driven. Ritchie Martin, Jr., the center’s executive director, says taking away gender-affirming care places transgender youth in harm’s way.

“Our community’s young people are not abstractions or bargaining chips. They are real, they are vulnerable, and they deserve safety, dignity, and care rooted in science and compassion,” he said in a statement. “Wisconsin cannot credibly claim a commitment to health equity while allowing fear driven policies to strip trans youth of the care that helps them survive and thrive.”

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services last month announced new regulatory measures under President Donald Trump’s recent executive order targeting gender-affirming care. The federal agency rolled out plans to bar hospitals from performing “sex-rejecting procedures” on children in order to participate in Medicare and Medicaid programs.

HHS says the rules are meant to “ensure that the U.S. government will not be in business with organizations that intentionally or unintentionally inflict permanent harm on children.”

Meanwhile, Fair Wisconsin Executive Director Abigail Swetz yesterday derided the federal government’s “all-out assault on trans people” and effort to hold funding “hostage.”

While her statement doesn’t name UW Health or Children’s Wisconsin specifically, she noted “our state’s own hospital systems give into threats of investigation and choose to pause care” for transgender youth.

— Marquette University researchers have developed a new method for analyzing rare genetic variants that “significantly outperforms” the current approach.

Shengtong Han, an assistant professor of biostatistics with the Milwaukee-based university’s School of Dentistry, recently wrote a scientific paper on the MIRAGE method, which stands for mixture-model-based rare-variant analysis on genes. The article was published last week in The American Journal of Human Genetics.

“Rare genetic variant association test is challenging due to sparse number of variants and the heterogeneity of variant effects,” Han said in the release.

The method was tested using genetic sequencing data related to autism, gleaning “new insights” into related genetic risks, according to the release. The MIRAGE method performed better than the standard, the university says.

Rare-variant analysis is widely used in genome sequencing studies, study authors wrote, noting these rare genetic variants often have a greater impact and “directly point out” causal genes.

“These potential benefits make association analysis with rare variants a priority for human genetics researchers,” they wrote, adding current methods are “often underpowered” compared to their proposed approach.

See the release.

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— Milwaukee-based HPS/PayMedix says it’s raised $33 million in equity and debt financing to further develop its health industry payments platform.

The company yesterday rolled out details for its recent funding, which includes a $16 million growth equity investment with several firms participating. The other $17 million comes from Escalate Capital Partners, based in Texas.

Tom Policelli, the company’s CEO, says demand for its PayMedix payments platform has “skyrocketed” within the last year as health care companies grapple with affordability challenges.

“This new investment will directly support expanding our platform so more patients can get the care they need and providers can serve their communities more effectively,” he said in a statement.

See the release.

— Alliant Energy says its proposed Columbia County 40-turbine wind project will be able to produce more energy than any other wind site in the state.

The Madison utility yesterday announced it has filed an application with the state Public Service Commission for the proposed 277-megawatt wind farm, noting the project has been in the works for nearly five years. Alliant says it’s signed an agreement for the site with wind turbine maker Nordex.

“Columbia Wind will have more production capability than any other Wisconsin wind site, while having significantly fewer turbines in operation,” said Ben Lipari, the utility’s vice president of commercial operations.

Once online, the site could produce enough energy to power about 100,000 homes annually. Alliant says it’s estimated to generate more than $100 million in tax revenue for the county and create up to 150 construction jobs.

Alliant Energy plans to start operating the wind farm by the end of 2028, noting the PSC is expected to make a decision in early 2027. The utility currently has 1,800 MW of wind power across Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota. The Columbia Wind project would bring that up to 2,077 MW.

See more in the release.

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