Georgia doctor accused of illegally viewing confidential medical records
By Rachel Aragon
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ATLANTA, Georgia (WANF) — Carroll County doctor Brent Harris, who is accused of illegally accessing patients’ medical and prescription records, is expected to accept a plea deal on Wednesday.
Carroll County resident Amy Hicks says she and her family were targeted two years ago.
Hicks has worked in healthcare for over a decade. But in 2021 she said she found herself defending her family and her profession against her former business partner and mentor at the time, Brent Harris.
“I am the person who always tries to go by the book and treat people how you want to be treated and it felt really defeating to know that someone that I once looked up to is now doing this to me and my family and that’s terrifying,” Hicks said.
Last year, a grand jury issued a 6-count indictment against Brent Harris on allegations that he illegally accessed medical and prescription records of Amy and her family.
“He obtained medical information first of my child,” Hicks told Atlanta News First.
According to the indictment, Harris is also accused of using a database to obtain prescription information on Amy and her husband for an unlawful purpose.
“He used some of that information he obtained about myself to file a complaint against my nursing license which was found baseless and ruled on with no fine or reprimand on my behalf,” said Hicks.
Hicks says Harris had no business using accessing the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) to look up her or her husband’s records.
“Even if you’ve been a patient of that doctor it doesn’t give them the freedom to just look back in the database at any point in time to see what you’re taking, you need to be coming to them, requesting some kind of treatment, which requires them to look in the database,” said Hicks.
Hicks says a plea deal is not how she envisioned justice, but she’s holding out hope.
“It really makes me wonder what kind of signal we’re sending, the message we’re sending to the future of our privacy and I hope that the judge will see through it.
Earlier Tuesday Atlanta News First made contact with Brent Harris’ attorney over the phone.
We are waiting on a statement from his office on the charges against his client and Wednesday’s court hearing.
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