Los Angeles, CA: A class action lawsuit has been filed against Stanford Hospital and Clinics on behalf of 20,000 patients who had their medical data breached and posted on a commercial website for the better part of a year.
The complaint, filed by Shana Springer on September 28 on behalf of fellow patients treated in Stanford's emergency room between March 1, 2009, and August 31, 2009, alleges Stanford Hospital and Clinics violated the Confidentiality of Medical Information Act, a state law that requires medical providers to safeguard patient information and prohibits its disclosure without written consent.
Specifically, the class action states "On its website, Stanford claims that its patients' 'health care experience is [its] highest priority.' Thus, it should be no surprise that when patients are treated at Stanford's facilities, they expect that their private medical information will be kept confidential and will not be disclosed to anyone without their authorization."
On September 8th, Stanford confirmed the data breach. While credit card and social security numbers were not compromised, the information that was released included medical record numbers, hospital account numbers, billing charges and emergency room admission and discharge dates. One man in Santa Clara had his psyciatric diagnosis made public.
The lawsuit is seeking $1,000 per patient, as well as other penalties, damages and attorneys fees.
