BJC HealthCare Privacy Settlement

Plaintiffs filed this lawsuit against Defendant on behalf of Settlement Class Members alleging the disclosure of personally identifiable information and protected health information for patients who used the BJC MyChart patient portal between June 2017 and August 2022.

Plaintiffs allege Defendant maintained web properties at www.bjc.org and www.barnesjewish.org for its patients to communicate with BJC, including but not limited to exchanging communications about bill payment, doctor’s services, treatments, conditions, appointments, and access to an online MyChart patient portal. Plaintiffs contend that through these web properties, Defendant caused the unauthorized transmission of personally identifiable patient data and redirection of the communications to be sent to Facebook, Google, SiteScout, Invoca, and the TradeDesk without patient knowledge, consent, authorization, or affirmative action.

Defendant denies the legal claims and denies any wrongdoing or liability. The Court has not determined any wrongdoing by Defendant or that any law has been violated. Instead, Plaintiffs and Defendant have agreed to a settlement to avoid the risk, cost, and time of continuing the lawsuit.

Plaintiffs and Defendant do not agree about the legal claims made in this lawsuit. The lawsuit has not gone to trial, and the Court has not decided in favor of Plaintiffs or Defendant. Instead, Plaintiffs and Defendant have agreed to settle the lawsuit. The Class Representatives, Defendant, and their lawyers believe the Settlement is best for Settlement Class Members because of the benefits available and the risks and uncertainty associated with continuing the lawsuit.

In a class action, one or more people (called class representatives) sue on behalf of all people who have similar legal claims. Together, all these people are called a class or class members. One court resolves the issues for all class members, except for those class members who timely exclude themselves (opt out) from the class.

You are included in the Settlement Class if you are an individual who, between June 2017 and August 2022, used BJC’s MyChart patient portal.

Yes. Excluded from the Class are BJC and its affiliates, parents, subsidiaries, officers, and directors, as well as the judge(s) presiding over this matter and the clerks of said judge(s).

If you are still not sure whether you are a Settlement Class Member, you may call toll-free 1-888-438-8534.

A $5.5 million Settlement Fund will be established to pay costs of notice and administration for the Settlement, a service award to the Class Representatives, payment of Class Counsel’s Attorneys’ Fees and Expenses, and the payment of claims. In addition, Defendant will pay an amount up to $3.75 million on a claims-made basis to the extent that the initial Settlement Fund of $5.5 million is not sufficient to cover the claims that are made.

Cash Payment: If you are a Settlement Class Member, you can submit a Claim Form to receive a $35.00 cash payment.

Your cash payment may be subject to a pro rata (a legal term meaning equal share) increase from the Settlement Fund if the amount of timely and valid Claim Forms does not use the entire net Settlement Fund. Alternatively, if the amount of timely and valid Claim Forms exceeds $9.25 million, your cash payment may be subject to a pro rata reduction.

Unless you exclude yourself (opt out), you are choosing to remain in the Settlement Class. If the Settlement is approved and becomes final, all Court orders and any judgments will apply to you and legally bind you. You will not be able to sue, continue to sue, or be part of any other lawsuit against the Defendant about the legal issues in this lawsuit that are released by this Settlement. The specific rights you are giving up are called “Released Claims”.

Section VII of the Settlement Agreement describes the Released Claims and the Release in necessary legal terminology, so please read this section carefully. The Settlement Agreement is available on the Documents page of this website. For questions regarding the Release or Released Claims and what the language in the Settlement Agreement means, you can also contact Class Counsel listed below for free, or you can talk to your own lawyer at your own expense.

You must have submitted a timely and valid Claim Form online or via mail by October 8, 2025, to receive a cash payment.

If you change your mailing address or email address after you submit a Claim Form, it is your responsibility to inform the Settlement Administrator of your updated information. You may notify the Settlement Administrator of any changes by writing to:

BJC Privacy Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 2600
Portland, OR 97208-2600

Cash payments were mailed out January 16, 2026 to claimants that selected paper checks as a form of payment, and to claimants where an email address was not provided or was invalid.

If a digital payment was selected, email notifications were emailed on January 16 with instructions on how to collect the digital payment. If you selected a digital payment, please check your junk/spam mail folder.

If you selected to receive your payment via check and you have not received it, you can contact us to request a check is reissued to you. You can call 1-888-438-8534 (toll-free) or send a letter to:

The deadline to exclude yourself from the Settlement was September 8, 2025.

No. If you opt out, you will not be entitled to receive a cash payment, and you will not be bound by the Settlement or any judgment in this lawsuit. You can only get a cash payment if you stay in the Settlement and submit a timely and valid Claim Form.

No. Unless you opt out, you give up any right to sue any of the Released Persons for the legal claims this Settlement resolves and Releases relating to the lawsuit, and you will be bound by all the terms of the Settlement and by all proceedings, orders, and judgments in the lawsuit. You must opt out of this lawsuit to start or continue with your own lawsuit or be part of any other lawsuit against the Released Persons. If you have a pending lawsuit, speak to your lawyer in that case immediately.

The deadline to object to the Settlement was September 8, 2025.

Objecting is simply telling the Court that you do not like something about the Settlement. You can object only if you stay in the Settlement Class. Opting out is telling the Court that you do not want to be part of the Settlement Class. If you opt out, you cannot object because you are no longer part of the Settlement.

Yes. The Court has appointed Amy Gunn of Gunn Slater as well as Jason ‘Jay’ Barnes and Eric Johnson of Simmons Hanly Conroy LLC as Class Counsel to represent you and the Settlement Class for the purposes of this Settlement. You may hire your own lawyer at your own cost and expense if you want someone other than Class Counsel to represent you in this lawsuit.

Class Counsel will ask the Court to award attorneys’ fees of up to $3 million from the Settlement Fund, plus reimbursement of costs. Class Counsel will also ask the Court to approve a service award for the Class Representatives of up to $15,000 each for their efforts in achieving the Settlement. If awarded by the Court, the Attorneys’ Fees and Expenses and the service award will be paid from the Settlement Fund. The Court may award less than these amounts.

Class Counsel’s application for the Attorneys’ Fees and Expenses and service award will be made available on this website after it is filed with the Court.

The Court will hold a Final Approval Hearing on October 16, 2025, at 1:30 p.m. before the Honorable David C. Mason at the Civil Courts Building, 10 N Tucker Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63101. At this hearing, the Court will consider whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate and decide whether to approve the Settlement, Class Counsel’s application for Attorneys’ Fees and Expenses, and service award.

If there are objections that were filed by the deadline, the Court will consider them. If you file a timely objection, and you would like to speak at the hearing, the Court will also listen to you or your lawyer speak at the hearing, if you so request.

Note: The date and time of the Final Approval Hearing are subject to change without further notice to the Settlement Class. The Court may also decide to hold the hearing via video conference or by telephone. You should check this website to confirm the date and time of the Final Approval Hearing have not changed.

No. Class Counsel will answer any questions the Court may have. However, you are welcome to attend at your own expense. If you file an objection, you do not have to attend the Final Approval Hearing to speak about it. As long as you file your written objection by the deadline, the Court will consider it.

Yes, as long as you do not exclude yourself (opt out) and you file a timely written objection and a Notice of Intention to Appear requesting to speak at the hearing, you can (but do not have to) participate and speak for yourself at the Final Approval Hearing. This is called making an appearance. You can also have your own lawyer speak for you, but you will have to pay for the lawyer yourself.

If you want to appear, or if you want your own lawyer instead of Class Counsel to speak for you at the hearing, you must follow all of the procedures for objecting and filing a Notice of Intention to Appear as listed above—and specifically include a statement whether you or your lawyer will appear at the Final Approval Hearing.

These FAQs summarize the Settlement. More details are in the Settlement Agreement. You can get a copy of the Settlement Agreement here. You may contact the Settlement Administrator at info@BJCPrivacySettlement.com, or write with questions to BJC Privacy Settlement Administrator. P.O. Box 2600, Portland, OR 97208-2600. You can call the Settlement Administrator at 1-888-438-8534 if you have any questions. Before doing so, however, please read the full Notice carefully. You may also find additional information elsewhere on the case website.