Memorial Healthcare Services Settles Pixel Litigation
Memorial Healthcare Services, a nonprofit healthcare provider serving patients in Southern California, has agreed to settle a class action lawsuit over its use of pixels and other tracking, web analytics, and advertising technologies on its website.
The tools are alleged to have been added to the website without the knowledge or consent of patients, causing website users’ personally identifiable information (PII) to be collected and transferred to third parties. The disclosures of PII and health information without consent are alleged to have violated the California Invasion of Privacy Act. Memorial Healthcare Services maintains that there was no wrongdoing.
The lawsuit – Valladolid v. Memorial Health Services – was filed by plaintiff Michelle Valladolid in the Superior Court of California, County of Los Angeles, individually and on behalf of similarly situated individuals. After considering the likely cost of continuing with the litigation and risks associated with a trial and related appeals, the defendant and plaintiff agreed to settle the litigation.
The parties were not able to agree to the terms of a settlement during a full-day mediation session on April 3, 2025; however, through ongoing negotiations, the material terms of a settlement were agreed upon, and the terms have now been finalized. The proposed settlement has received preliminary approval from the court, and the final fairness hearing has been scheduled for September 17, 2026. The class consists of individuals who accessed the Memorial Health Services patient portal between March 7, 2022, and July 8, 2022.
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Under the terms of the settlement, class members may claim a one-time cash payment, which will be paid pro rata from the $750,000 settlement fund. The defendant has agreed to cover the cost of attorneys’ fees and expenses, settlement administration and notification costs, and a service award for the class representative, which will be deducted from the settlement fund before any cash payments are made. The remaining funds will be shared equally between all class members who submit a valid claim.
Individuals wishing to object to the settlement must do so by July 15, 2026. The deadline for opting out is August 21, 2026, and claims must be submitted by August 21, 2026. Further information can be found on the settlement website: https://mhspixelsettlement.com/
