Two men from North Dakota, Kyle Bylin and Jeremy Morrison, have filed a lawsuit against Unity Medical Center after discovering they were allegedly switched at birth nearly four decades ago.

The revelation came when Bylin received an at-home DNA test as a Christmas gift, which connected him to his biological aunt through a genealogy platform. This prompted Morrison, the aunt’s nephew, to take his own DNA test. The results confirmed that the two men had been raised by each other’s biological families.

According to the complaint filed against Unity Medical Center, Bylin and Morrison were the only babies born at the hospital just hours apart on January 28, 1988. The lawsuit alleges that without their parents’ knowledge, the newborns were switched before leaving the hospital.

The complaint states, “The employees and/or agents of Unity Medical Center who switched the newborns and then failed to recognize or correct the error were acting within the scope of their employment and/or agency.”

Unity Medical Center acknowledged the impact of the discovery in a statement to ABC News, saying, “We recognize the profound impact this discovery has had on them and their families. Unfortunately, because of the passage of nearly four decades, the medical and staffing records that might have provided additional clarity no longer exist, and no members of the delivery team from that time are still employed by the hospital.”

Bylin told ABC, “We’ve tried to unite as a group and just recognize that no matter what, there’s different ways that this can be socially messy. Everyone’s getting to know people that they didn’t know before.”

According to the DNA Diagnostics Center, up to 18 babies a year may go home with families that aren’t their own, though such switches are usually caught almost immediately.

Sources