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Novant Health Data Breach

Posted on behalf of Arnold Law Firm in
NOTICE: This blog is for historical context only. The Arnold Law Firm is no longer accepting new clients for this data breach action.
digital lock breached in the metaverseIn May 2020, Novant Health (“Novant”), a regional healthcare provider, launched a promotional campaign to connect with more patients through the Novant Health MyChart patient portal. The campaign involved Facebook advertisements and a Meta (Facebook parent company) tracking pixel placed on the Novant websites to help track the success of the ad campaign in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. A pixel is a piece of code that measures activity and experiences on a website. However, that pixel was configured incorrectly, and it led to the unauthorized access/disclosure of protected health information (“PHI”) from electronic medical records and personally identifiable information (“PII”) through the MyChart patient portal. On June 17, 2022, Novant discovered PHI and PII were disclosed to Facebook through the pixel in the ad on the MyChart portal. Novant is in the process of mailing letters to those affected. These letters will confirm, through Novant’s MyChart, Novant sent to Facebook including, but not limited to, PHI and demographic information and other PII such as email addresses, phone numbers, computer IP addresses, emergency contact information entered into Emergency Contact or Advanced Care Planning, appointment type, date, and time, physician selected buttons selected on online menu, and content typed into free text boxes. If you received a letter your information was disclosed to Facebook. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights (“HHS”), the “Breach Submission Date” was August 14, 2022. Novant Health is a non-profit health organization headquartered in Winston-Salem, North Carolina with locations throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Virginia. It has 15 hospitals, 674+ outpatient locations, 30+ imaging centers, and 605 physician clinics. It generates $5.4 billion per year in revenue, and it employs 29, 333 people. In total, HHS reports the data of over 1,362, 296 individuals was compromised in this data breach. If you received a data breach incident letter from Novant you were impacted by the breach.

What Information is Involved?

According to Novant the following information was exposed:
  • Names
  • Addresses 
  • Dates of Birth
  • Email address
  • Computer IP addresses
  • Emergency contact information 
  • Types of medical appointments, dates, times and locations 
  • Patient Physician(s)
  • Selections made on MyChart and other things typed on the site
Some of this information is called your Personally Identifiable Information (“PII”), and some of it is called protected health information (“PHI”). PII and PHI tell others about you and your health care, and they are considered part of your identity. Businesses and medical providers are required to secure this information or risk facing statutory penalties, among other legal penalties. Stolen PII and PHI can be used by identity thieves to engage in fraudulent activity using your identity. According to their website, Novant will provide credit monitoring to any individuals who may have provided Social Security numbers or other financial information through a free text box impacted by pixel in MyChart. The best way to protect yourself after a data breach is to sign up for credit and identity protection services as soon as possible. California offers extra protections and legal rights to its residents through the California Consumer Privacy Act.

NOTICE: If you received a NOTICE OF DATA BREACH letter from Novant Health, contact the Arnold Law Firm at (916) 777-7777 to discuss your legal options, or submit a confidential Case Evaluation form here.

Settlement - $3,767,000

Truck Accident

A 20-year-old man who had been married for just 12 days left home on his way to work. He was driving on Pleasant Grove Road in Sutter County in the early morning when he came upon a slow-moving truck. As he pulled out to pass the truck, the truck driver turned left in front of him. The young man attempted to steer back into his lane but his vehicle struck an un-flagged piece of metal extending from the back of the truck. He died in the resulting crash.

Expert witnesses brought in by the Arnold Law Firm proved that the truck, owned and operated by a hauling firm, should never have been on the highway that morning. Specifically, the rear and side turn signals did not work and the rear-view mirror was in a poor state of adjustment at the time of the collision. As a result, the driver, who had failed to properly inspect the vehicle before setting out that morning, couldn’t see the young man’s vehicle as it attempted to pass.

The poor condition of the truck, its lack of maintenance and the manner in which it was operated were found to be substantial factors in causing the collision that killed the young man. The testimony also established that the man had been making a lawful pass at the lawful speed limit and acted reasonably when he attempted to avoid the collision.

The man’s 20-year-old widow was awarded $3,767,000.77, his parents were awarded $185,131 and the family was reimbursed $11,899 in funeral expenses. Though money is a poor substitute for a young man’s life, this verdict demonstrates that drivers who endanger the lives of others will be held accountable for their actions.