Sutter Health, a large hospital and health care system in Northern California, wrongly disclosed the personal and private information of 4.2 million patients when it allowed a computer containing highly sensitive medical and personal records to be stolen. The wrongly disclosed private records include patients’ names, addresses, birth dates, phone numbers, medical record numbers and insurance plans. Unfortunately, the personal medical information of nearly one million people was also disclosed. In violation of required standards, the records and information were not encrypted, so victims of the disclosure face significant risks.
Sutter Health operates 24 hospitals in Northern California and works with many other facilities and doctors. Hospitals and other entities that are entrusted with people’s private information have an important legal obligation to maintain patient privacy. Failure to meet this obligation is deeply harmful to patients; fortunately, people who are victimized by wrongful disclosures can be protected by the court system. For example, when TRICARE failed to fulfill its responsibilities, our attorneys brought a high-profile class action lawsuit on behalf of 4.9 million people who were victimized by wrongful disclosure.
If you have received medical treatment at a hospital or facility operated by Sutter Health, from a doctor in the Sutter Health network, or if you suspect that your records might have been among those disclosed, please contact us immediately to discuss your legal rights.