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    Ohio woman resigns from her medical billing job and discovers her former manager is telling clients she was fired for misconduct involving patient accounts: ‘I don’t want this rumor to damage my new job before I even start’

    Resigning politely and finishing out two weeks without a single write-up is about as clean an exit as a job can have. Then, three weeks later, a former manager is telling healthcare clients that the same person was terminated for misconduct involving patient accounts, which in that industry is basically one step below saying they were arrested.

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    • Woman resting her head on her arms at a table beside a phone, looking tired and emotionally drained.
      via Getty Images For Unsplash+

      Tired woman resting her head on folded arms beside a smartphone, looking emotionally drained indoors.

      Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

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    • Can my former employer tell clients I was fired for misconduct when I resigned?

      Location: Ohio. I left my job at a small medical billing company three weeks ago. I had worked there for almost four years and gave a written two week notice
      via Togusa_Gu
    • because I accepted a position at a larger company. My resignation email was polite and just said I appreciated the opportunity but was moving on.
      via Togusa_Gu
    • My manager replied "accepted" and I finished my last two weeks without being written up or disciplined.
      via Togusa_Gu
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    • Yesterday one of the clinic managers I used to work with through that job called me privately. She said my former manager told at least two client
      via Togusa_Gu
    • offices that I was "terminated for misconduct involving patient accounts" and that they should not contact me for any reason. I
      via Togusa_Gu
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    • was never accused of anything like that. I did not take files, I did not access anything after my last day, and I definitely did not do anything with patient accounts.
      via Togusa_Gu
    • Woman sitting in a chair with her hand against her face, staring off thoughtfully with a worried expression.
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      Pensive woman resting her chin on her hand, looking worried while sitting indoors in a dimly lit room.

      Image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.

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    • The new job I accepted is in the same general field, so this could follow me very badly.
      via Togusa_Gu
    • I emailed HR asking for a copy of my personnel file and written confirmation of my separation. reason. They replied only that. they "do not provide internal records to former employees"
      via Togusa_Gu
    • and that all employment verification requests go through payroll. I also asked my former manager directly why she was telling people I was fired, and she wrote back, "You know what
      via Togusa_Gu
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    • you did. Stop contacting our clients." I have not contacted any clients except replying to one person who reached out to me first.
      via Togusa_Gu

    • The move here is interesting because it is not random gossip. It is targeted. Telling specific clients in the same field not to contact someone, using language that implies a HIPAA violation or worse, is the kind of thing that sounds like a personal grudge wearing a professional costume. The you know what you did response to a direct question is also doing a lot of work, mostly confirming that whoever sent it understood exactly what they were implying and had no intention of walking it back.

    • I am worried becuase these are healthcare clients and the wording makes it sound like I did something illegal or unethical with patient
      via Togusa_Gu

    • What makes this legally significant rather than just professionally annoying is the specificity of the claim. Defamation in an employment context usually lives or dies on whether the statement was false and whether it caused real damage. Terminated for misconduct involving patient accounts about someone who voluntarily resigned and was never accused of anything is a very specific false statement, made to people in a position to affect that person's career in a very specific industry. That is not vague enough to be opinion. That is a factual claim that can be disproven.

    • information. I don't want to overreact, but I also don't want this rumor to damage my new job before I even start. Do I have any legal way to make them stop saying this or force them to
      via Togusa_Gu
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    • The HR response refusing to provide personnel file records is its own red flag. A separation reason is not a state secret, and a company that suddenly cannot confirm how an employment ended after allegedly telling clients it ended badly is a company that knows it has a problem.

    • correct it? Should I be saving the text from the clinic manager, or is that not useful without her being willing to get involved?
      via Togusa_Gu

    • Saving every text, email, and voicemail is the right move regardless of whether the clinic manager wants to get involved. Documentation has a way of becoming useful later even when it seems uncertain now. An employment attorney in Ohio who handles defamation or wrongful interference cases is the next call, because a cease and desist letter from a lawyer lands very differently than a polite email asking someone to please stop telling clients you committed federal healthcare violations.

    • Jadekintsugi I am not a lawyer: get a lawyer, ASAP, and document, document, document. Save everything in text, save the emails asking for confirmation, save all textual back-and- forth between yourself and the company.
      via Togusa_Gu
    • What it sounds like this former manager is engaging in, is slander. Laws vary from country to country, so please, get legal assistance as quickly as possible.
      via Togusa_Gu
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    • daHavi You likely have a case against the company and manager for slandering your reputation with false statements. Talk to an employment lawyer. They may take the case on contingency (they get paid at the end)
      via Togusa_Gu
    • AwareAd4688 Document everything and keep copies of every message, especially the clinic manager's statement and your manager's "you know what you did" reply.
      via Togusa_Gu
    • In Ohio, falsely telling clients you were fired for misconduct involving patient accounts could cross into defamation if it damages your reputation or employment prospects. A lawyer can also send a
      via Togusa_Gu
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    • preservation/demand letter telling them to stop making those statements and correct them before this spreads further.
      via Togusa_Gu

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