Settlement Resolves Class Action Data Breach Complaint Against Community Dental Care
Community Dental Care, a nonprofit Medicaid dental provider in the state of Minnesota, has agreed to settle class action litigation over a 2024 cyberattack and data breach that exposed patients’ personal and protected health information.
The cyberattack and data breach that sparked the litigation occurred on or around December 20, 2024. A cybercriminal actor accessed its network and potentially exfiltrated the personal and protected health information of more than 130,000 individuals, including their names, health insurance information, dates of birth, medical information, and Social Security numbers. Approximately 7,100 of the affected individuals had their Social Security numbers exposed in the incident. Notification letters started to be mailed to the affected individuals on March 28, 2025.
A few days after mailing notifications, a class action lawsuit was filed in the District Court for Ramsey County in the state of Minnesota. A further four class action complaints were filed in response to the data breach, which were consolidated into a single complaint. The consolidated lawsuit alleged that the data breach was due to negligence, as the defendant failed to implement reasonable and appropriate cybersecurity measures. All claims were denied by the defendant, who sought to have the lawsuit dismissed. The motion to dismiss was granted in part and denied in part by the court, with the claims for negligence, negligence per se, and breach of implied contract allowed to proceed. The consolidated class action complaint, In re Community Dental Care, is pending in the District Court for Ramsey County, Minnesota.
Prior to discovery, all parties engaged in discussions about a potential settlement, and after mediation, the terms of a settlement were agreed to by all parties. Class members may submit a claim for reimbursement of documented, unreimbursed losses fairly traceable to the data breach up to a maximum of $5,000 per class member. Alternatively, a claim may be submitted for a one-time cash payment of $50 per class member. In addition to one of those cash payments, class members are eligible to claim a two-year membership to a medical data monitoring service. The deadline for objection and opting out is September 24, 2026. Claims must be submitted by October 19, 2026, and the final fairness hearing has been scheduled for November 23, 2026.
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