Willis-Knighton Medical Center Settles Website Tracking Technology Lawsuit
A settlement has been agreed to resolve a class action lawsuit against the Louisiana health system, Willis-Knighton Medical Center. The litigation stems from the use of tracking technologies on its public-facing website.
Several lawsuits were filed against Willis-Knighton Medical Center over the use of tracking tools on its website and patient portal, which are alleged to have caused unauthorized transmissions of personally identifiable, non-public information to third parties such as Google and Facebook. The lawsuits were consolidated in a single action – Jacqueline Horton, et al. v. Willis-Knighton Medical Center – which was heard in the 10th Judicial District Court for Natchitoches Parish in Louisiana.
Tracking technologies such as pixels are extensively used on the Internet, including by many healthcare providers. The problem is that these tools may collect sensitive data from website visitors, including information classed as protected health information under HIPAA. That information may be transmitted to third parties unauthorized to receive the information. One study found that more than 99% of hospitals had added these tools to their websites.
Willis-Knighton Medical Center denies the allegation and specifically denies that any medical information from its website or patient portal was shared with Facebook or Google; however, to avoid the cost and distraction of continuing with the litigation, and the uncertain outcome of a trial, the decision was taken to settle the litigation.
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Under the terms of the settlement, class members are entitled to one year of CyEx Privacy Shield Pro, a privacy protection product, and may also claim a cash payment. The cash payments differ depending on the subclass. Individuals who used the “request an appointment” feature may claim a cash payment of $25, members of the InteliChart settlement class may claim a cash payment of $38, and members of the Medtech settlement class may claim a cash payment of $15.
Willis-Knighton Medical Center has also agreed not to use 16 specified digital analytics tools on its website and patient portal for a period of two years from the date of final approval of the settlement. The list includes Google DoubleClick, Google Ads, Meta, Amazon, TikTok, Pinterest, and TheTradeDesk.
The deadline for objection to and exclusion from the settlement is November 18, 2025. Claims must be submitted by December 18, 2025, and the final approval hearing has been scheduled for January 22, 2026.
