Patrick Ouellette writes:
A former Flowers Hospital lab technician was indicted in early September on charges that he stole eight patients’ protected health information (PHI) as part of an alleged tax fraud scheme from June 2013 to February 2014. As a result of the breach, five affected patients filed a punitive class-action lawsuit in federal court, referencing a violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act and increased risks to identity theft and medical fraud.
According to Law 360, U.S. District Judge W. Keith Watkins gave the plaintiffs an opportunity to amend their claims and they will file a second complaint against the hospital. Flowers Hospital had previously filed a motion to dismiss the suit with the argument that the plaintiffs have “failed to link the data breach to any actual economic harm they have suffered” and the claims lacked standing. However, Watkins allowing the plaintiffs to amend their complaint also meant that the motion to dismiss would not carry over to the updated filing.
Read more on HealthITSecurity.com.
Previous coverage of the breach and lawsuit on PHIprivacy.net can be found here, here, here, and here.