‘Total files’ of patients, many with HIV and AIDS, missing

A low-level Harris County Hospital District administrator probably violated federal law when she downloaded medical and financial records for 1,200 patients with HIV, AIDS and other medical conditions onto a flash drive that later was lost or stolen, legal experts said Thursday.

District officials have refused to release any information about the employee who saved the information to the now-missing device. But a memo from the district’s chief financial officer obtained by the Houston Chronicle identifies the employee as an associate administrator.