Data Breach at Georgia Healthcare Network Exposed 1.4M, Says Class Action Lawsuit

St. Joseph’s/Candler Data Breach Class Action Lawsuit Overview:

• Why: A data breach of the Georgia healthcare network’s systems may have exposed sensitive personal, financial, and health information of millions. 
• Who: A Georgia resident filed a class action lawsuit against St. Joseph’s/Candler Health System.
• Where: The class action lawsuit is pending in Georgia federal court.

St. Joseph’s/Candler Health System faces a class action lawsuit after a data breach that may have exposed sensitive personal, financial, and health information of 1.4 million individuals connected to the sprawling healthcare network. 

The lead plaintiff is Daniel Elliott, a patient of St. Joseph’s/Candler Health System. The class action lawsuit alleges that the Georgia healthcare network “violated its privacy policy and acted negligently” with its failure to secure patients’ information and take preventative measures to avoid the ransomware attack and data breach.

Due to the data breach, patients and all those affected “suffered an increased risk of identity theft and medical identity theft” and will have to continually monitor their financial accounts, health insurance accounts, and credit files, the class action lawsuit. 

St. Joseph’s/Candler Expansive Data Breach Unnoticed for Months

The Georgia healthcare network’s systems were breached from Dec. 18, 2020 to June 17, 2021 when the unauthorized access was detected, according to court documents. 

The class action lawsuit accuses the company of neglecting appropriate data security processes, policies, protocols, and tech systems to protect patients’ information. 

The leaked information could include names, addresses, birth dates, Social Security Numbers, billing accounts, health insurance plans, and medical records, according to an Aug. 10 letter sent by St. Joseph’s/Candler CEO Paul Hinchey. 

St. Joseph’s/Candler is offering patients a one-year membership to Experian’s IdentityWorks, which may help identify possible misuse of personal information. 

Elliot argues in his class action that those exposed to the data breach should also get monetary relief for punitive damages, restitution and disgorgement, and payment of attorney costs.

Was your information exposed in the Georgia healthcare network’s data breach? Tell us about your experience in the comments below!

The plaintiff is represented by Harris Lowry Manton LLP.

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