Drugmaker Releases Patients' E-mail Addresses

July 5, 2001

Drugmaker Eli Lilly last week inadvertently divulged the e-mail addresses of some patients with depression, bulimia or obsessive-compulsive disorder, The Washington Post reported Wednesday, quoting company executives.

A June 27 e-mail message listed the addresses of more than 600 people who had signed up for an Internet service provided by Lilly to routinely send them reminders about taking the company's Prozac medicine or attending to other matters.

The American Civil Liberties Union on Tuesday asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate whether Lilly violated its privacy policy or any trade laws that govern the use of customer information, according to the paper. —Reuters