Man Switched at Birth
What began as a casual holiday gift has turned into a life-altering revelation—and now, a legal battle. A New York man is suing the hospital where he was born after a DNA test revealed he was switched at birth more than three decades ago, upending the lives of two families and raising troubling questions about hospital procedures from the past.
Michael Andrews, 35, of Queens, says he took an at-home DNA test in late 2023, mostly out of curiosity. “It was a gift from my girlfriend,” he told reporters at a press conference on Monday. “We thought it would be fun to see where my ancestors were from—maybe find out I had Irish or Italian roots. We were joking about it. But when the results came in, nothing matched what I’d been told my whole life.”
Not only did Andrews’ ethnic background not align with family stories, but the test showed no genetic connection to either of his parents, Thomas and Denise Andrews, who raised him since birth. “At first, I thought it was a mistake,” said Andrews. “But the more I looked into it, the clearer it became—something was seriously wrong.”
Shocked and confused, Andrews began digging deeper. With the help of a private genealogist and further DNA testing, he eventually identified a couple living in Rochester, New York, whose son—also born in July 1989 at St. Catherine’s Hospital in Brooklyn—turned out to be his biological counterpart.
The families have since met privately, and while details of those meetings remain confidential, both sides are said to be grappling with emotional fallout.
A Life Built on a Lie
“I love my parents. They are my parents in every way that counts,” Andrews said. “But learning that you were given to the wrong family by mistake… it shakes you to your core. You start questioning everything—your memories, your relationships, your sense of identity.”
Andrews filed a lawsuit against St. Catherine’s Hospital this week in New York State Supreme Court, citing negligence, medical malpractice, emotional distress, and violation of duty of care. The suit also seeks damages for the long-term psychological and social consequences of the error.
His attorney, Rachel Lin, said the hospital failed in its “most basic duty—to make sure newborns are safely and accurately returned to the right families.” According to Lin, the hospital’s recordkeeping from the late 1980s was “shockingly disorganized,” with paper charts and handwritten name tags being the primary methods of tracking infants.
“Had this happened today, digital safeguards would’ve made such a mistake nearly impossible,” Lin said. “But that doesn’t excuse the failure back then. There were protocols in place—even then—that simply weren’t followed.”
The Other Family
The family of the man who was raised as the Andrews’ biological son has asked to remain anonymous for the time being. However, they released a joint statement through legal counsel expressing both sympathy and grief.
“This discovery has changed our lives overnight,” the statement read. “We are in the early stages of coming to terms with what this means for our son, for us, and for the family we never knew existed. We hope to move forward with compassion, honesty, and healing.”
According to sources close to both families, conversations are ongoing about future meetings and establishing long-term relationships, but the emotional road ahead is expected to be difficult.
Institutional Silence
St. Catherine’s Hospital, now operated under a different healthcare system, has not publicly commented beyond a brief statement: “We are aware of the recent lawsuit filed and are currently reviewing the claims. Patient care and safety have always been our top priorities, and we take these allegations very seriously.”
However, records show the hospital faced several complaints related to maternity care in the late 1980s and early 1990s before undergoing a full administrative restructuring. Whether those earlier complaints are related to the current case remains unclear.
DNA Testing and the New Normal
As consumer DNA testing becomes more commonplace, experts say cases like Andrews’ may become more frequent. “It’s the tip of the iceberg,” said Dr. Naomi Feldman, a professor of bioethics at NYU Langone Health. “People are discovering long-hidden family secrets—affairs, adoptions, donor conceptions, and yes, even hospital errors.”
She added, “These tests are forcing society to reckon with biological truth in ways we haven’t before. And the consequences can be profound—legally, emotionally, and culturally.”
While rare, cases of babies being switched at birth have occurred sporadically across the U.S. and around the world. In one highly publicized 1990s case in Virginia, two families discovered their daughters had been accidentally swapped at a small-town hospital. A lengthy legal battle followed, and both children eventually developed relationships with both their biological and non-biological families.
What Comes Next
For Michael Andrews, the road ahead remains uncertain. He is now working with a therapist to process the emotional shock and says he’s taking things “one day at a time.”
“There’s no handbook for this. No script. Just a bunch of people trying to figure out who they really are,” he said. “I don’t know what justice looks like exactly, but I do know that someone needs to be held accountable. And I want to make sure this never happens to anyone else.”
As the case makes its way through the courts, it could set legal precedents around statute of limitations and institutional responsibility in long-buried medical errors.
For now, the families are focused on healing—one conversation, and one truth, at a time.
