State Sen. Siobhan S. Dunnavant , a Henrico County physician , broke federal health privacy rules by sending a political solicitation to her patients during her 2015 campaign , according to a letter from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services ’ civil rights office . Dunnavant ’s decision to share patient contact information with her Senate campaign and its direct - mail business was “ impermissible ” under federal HIPAA law , HHS investigators wrote in a letter last month informing Dunnavant and her attorney that the case was being closed . ;