Medical Identity Theft Lawsuits | Protecting Patient Data & Legal Rights

Medical identity theft involves the fraudulent use of someone’s personal and health information to obtain medical services or insurance benefits. Healthcare data breaches and cyberattacks put millions of patients at increased risk. More patients are turning to legal action to hold negligent organizations accountable.

What Is Medical Identity Theft?

Medical identity theft can occur when a hacker steals or uses personal information to submit fraudulent claims. Medical identity theft can even disrupt your own medical care.

Following data theft incidents, victims are suddenly faced with serious financial fraud and identity theft. And also medical identity theft, which can be very costly. A majority of victims pay an average of $13,500 to resolve instances of medical fraud, and many pay much more. When identity theft targets insurance providers or government programs, the costs are seen in higher insurance costs.

Joe Lyon investigates consumer data privacy cases for plaintiffs nationwide. After any data theft event, legal action may be necessary to recover substantial damages.

The Dangers for Victims

In recent years, medical data was kept in paper file systems, but now have almost all been converted into electronic health records, stored on medical data networks or third-party cloud systems. Because of the vast amount of electronic data stored on different devices and networks, it’s much harder to protect.

Large-scale healthcare data breaches have been on the rise over the last five years, including a major hack of Anthem when about 70 million of its personal records were reportedly stolen.

Aside from basic ways to protect your medical information, it is prudent to look out for signs that someone is using your medical information. Some obvious medical identity theft red flags include:

• Getting a bill from a doctor or hospital for services you didn’t get
• Billing errors or errors in your Explanation of Benefits statement
• Bills for prescription medications you don’t take
• Any calls from debt collectors about a mysterious medical debt
• Medical debt collection notices that you don’t recognize on a credit report
• Notices from health insurance companies saying you reached your benefit limit
• A denial of insurance coverage because your medical records show a pre-existing condition you don’t have.

Recent Medical Identity Theft Lawsuits and Settlements

Over the past decade, medical identity theft litigation has gained momentum as courts recognize the lasting harm caused by healthcare data misuse.

Following a massive breach impacting nearly 80 million patients, Anthem faced class actions alleging inadequate data security that facilitated identity theft and fraud. The case led to a record-breaking $115 million settlement.

After hackers accessed the medical records of 11 million members, lawsuits claimed the company ignored security vulnerabilities. The case resulted in a multimillion-dollar settlement for victims.

Health industry experts say certain individuals are more likely to become targets, including people on Medicare and the elderly. Older adults are more susceptible to scams because they tend to be less guarded about disclosing personal health information. Children’s health records are also valuable because a minor’s clean credit report can be used when no one is checking credit reports.

New mothers, surgery patients, and people with chronic conditions like cancer are also at higher risk because of an increased activity within the healthcare system, and the more opportunity for medical records to be breached.

Anyone who posts personal information on social media are at higher risk. The more information available online, the more an individual may be targeted.

When medical documents are no longer needed, they should be disposed of. In the case of paper forms, they should be shredded. Electronic data should be destroyed as well. Any medical statements sent to you in the mail should be carefully handled, and individuals should consider changing to an online account for medical bills or Explanation of Benefits statements. At all costs, protect your Social Security number, which can be used to commit fraud quite easily.

It is important to not give your medical information to anyone who calls, emails, or texts you unexpectedly.

Why You Should Hire The Lyon Firm

The Lyon Firm has extensive experience handling data breach and identity theft lawsuits and we aggressively advocate for patients whose sensitive information has been compromised.

By holding negligent healthcare providers and data brokers accountable, The Lyon Firm drives systemic change in how organizations protect patient data. If you have been impacted by a medical identity theft incident, working with a skilled legal team can make all the difference in restoring your financial security and protecting your future healthcare.

The Lyon Firm is currently involved in a variety of class action data breach litigation, representing plaintiffs nationwide. If you suspect medical identity theft or personal data theft, contact Joe Lyon for a free and confidential case review.