HR told my former manager the reason I used protected leave, and now it is being brought up in my new department
Location: Texas. I work for a large retail company in Dallas, in a corporate office position. Earlier this year I used intermittent FMLA for a medical issue. I gave the paperwork to HR and my manager only knew that I had approved leave on certain days. I never told him the diagnosis or the treatment details because I didn’t want that floating around at work.
In April I transferred to a different department in the same company. Last week my new supervisor asked me, during a one on one, if my “condition” was going to affect the busy season. I was caught off guard and asked what she meant. She said my old manager had warned her that I “missed work because of treatment” and that she should plan around me. She used a phrase that is very specific to my diagnosis, not something you would guess from just seeing my attendance. I asked HR how she got that information, and the HR rep told me they had “shared context” with leadership so the transfer would be smooth.
I feel like this has already damaged how my new team sees me. I have not missed a day in this department, but now my supervisor keeps saying things like “just be transparent early” and not assigning me certain time sensitive projects. I don’t want to quit, and I don’t want to turn this into a giant fight if I have no legal footing. But I also don’t think HR can just tell managers private medical details becuase it is convenient. Is this a HIPAA issue, an FMLA issue, or something else under Texas or federal law? What should I document before I respond to HR again?