Cornerstone Specialty Hospitals $2.35M Data Breach Settlement

Individuals who received a notification from Cornerstone Healthcare Group Management Services LLC d/b/a Cornerstone Specialty Hospitals stating a data incident discovered in December 2023 may have compromised their personal information could be eligible to claim up to $12,500 and other benefits from a class action settlement.

Cornerstone Healthcare Group Management Services LLC agreed to pay $2.35 million to settle a class action lawsuit alleging it failed to adequately protect private information, resulting in a data breach that potentially exposed the sensitive data of patients and employees.

Who can file a claim?

Individuals are eligible to participate in the settlement if:

• They received a notification letter from Cornerstone stating the December 2023 data incident may have compromised their private information.
• Their name appears on the defendant’s settlement class list of affected individuals.

The settlement class is divided into two groups:

• General settlement class members: Individuals whom the data incident may have impacted
• SSN subclass members: Individuals whose Social Security number the data incident potentially compromised. This group is eligible for additional benefits, including credit monitoring and a higher reimbursement cap.

The settlement administrator mailed class members a notice of their eligibility.

How much can class members get?

The settlement provides several options for compensation:

• Documented losses: To claim reimbursement, class members must provide documentation of out-of-pocket expenses that are fairly traceable to the data incident. For SSN subclass members, this can include both ordinary and extraordinary losses up to a combined total of $10,000. For general class members, the cap is $2,500 for ordinary losses only.
• Examples of reimbursable ordinary losses include credit monitoring costs, unreimbursed bank fees, long-distance phone charges, postage, gasoline for local travel and costs associated with identity theft or fraud.
• Examples of extraordinary losses include unreimbursed costs resulting from identity theft, falsified tax returns or other misuse of private information provided the class member exhausted all available credit monitoring and identity theft insurance.

• Credit monitoring: SSN subclass members can claim two years of three-bureau credit monitoring and identity protection services (including $1 million in identity fraud insurance).
• Pro rata cash payment: Class members who do not have documented losses may claim a pro rata cash payment. SSN subclass members will receive three times the amount of other class members. The exact payment will depend on the number of valid claims and the amount left in the settlement fund after the settlement administrator pays other costs.

How to claim a class action payment

Class members can file a claim online or download, print, complete and mail the PDF claim form. The deadline to submit a claim is May 8, 2026.

Settlement administrator's mailing address: Cornerstone Data Incident Settlement Administrator, PO Box 2271, Baton Rouge, LA 70821

What proof or documentation is necessary for claim submission?

• To submit a paper claim form, class members must provide the notice ID from the settlement notice they received.
• To claim reimbursement for documented losses, class members must provide supporting documentation that is not self-prepared (such as receipts or bank statements) and a description of how the loss is linked to the data incident.
• For pro rata cash payments or credit monitoring, class members must select the correct option on the claim form.

Payout options

• Paper check mailed to the provided address
• Credit monitoring activation code

$2.35 million settlement fund breakdown

The $2,350,000 settlement fund includes:

• Settlement administration costs: To be determined
• Attorneys' fees: Up to $822,500
• Attorneys' expenses: Up to $25,000
• Service award to class representative: $3,000
• Payments to eligible class members: Remaining funds

Important dates

• Exclusion deadline: April 8, 2026
• Deadline to file a claim: May 8, 2026
• Final approval hearing: May 14, 2026

When is the Mireles v. Cornerstone Healthcare Group Management Services LLC payout date?

The settlement administrator will distribute funds and/or credit monitoring codes to all valid claimants approximately 15 days after the court resolves any appeals and grants final approval to the settlement or 60 days after the claims deadline, whichever is later.

Why is there a class action settlement?

The class action lawsuit alleged that Cornerstone Healthcare Group Management Services LLC failed to implement reasonable security measures to protect private information, resulting in a data breach it discovered in December 2023.

The defendant denies any wrongdoing but agreed to settle to avoid the uncertainty and expense of continued litigation and provide compensation to affected individuals sooner.

Sources

1. Class notice
2. Claim form
3. Settlement agreement
4. Settlement FAQ