Facts

Deanna Debaeke, Danna Graekwingholt, Jeanne Hambric, Linda Kerkow, Loba Moon, and Desiree Ortiz filed a putative class action against St. Joseph Health System and its hospitals, in connection with alleged data security breach.

PLAINTIFFS' CONTENTIONS:
St. Joseph Health System allegedly violated the Confidentiality of Medical Information Act when it released confidential information of more than 31,800 patients in February 2011. The data breach allegedly exposed sensitive and confidential patient information to the public, allowing search engines access to such information. The information remained accessible until around February 2012. Plaintiffs brought this lawsuit for CMIA violations, negligence, money had and received, and violation of the state Unfair Competition Law.

DEFENDANTS' CONTENTIONS:
Defendants demurred for failure to state a claim for relief.

Result

The parties reached a settlement valued at $28 million, including, among other things, cash payment of $7.5 million, identity theft/credit monitoring, and other remedial actions.