Nebraska AG files lawsuit against Change Healthcare over security data breach
By Brian Beach 
, Reporter Nebraska Public Media
16 de Diciembre de 2024 a las 13:00 ·
Listen To This Story
Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers filed a lawsuit against Change Healthcare Inc. Monday, alleging the company violated Nebraska's consumer protection and data security laws.
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated, which owns Change Healthcare, and Optum, Inc. are also named as defendants in the lawsuit.
In February 2024, more than 100,000,000 customers nationwide had health and financial data breached by a hacker group called BlackCat.
The group spent more than nine days accessing social security numbers, medical records, and billing details before they were detected.
Hilgers said the company’s lack of basic security protections exacerbated the cyberattack, causing significant harm to Nebraska hospitals and patients.
He also criticized Change's delay in notifying customers of the data breach. Hilgers said the company didn't notify the public until nearly five months after the data breach.
"The most sensitive information about an individual that you could possibly imagine has been exposed because of Change Healthcare's failures, and now is on the dark web," he said. "Because of the failure to provide timely notice, Nebraskans have not had a fighting chance to fight back against this."
The statutes Nebraska is suing under have monetary penalties of $2,000 per violation. The complaint estimates that around 575,000 Nebraskans were impacted.
Nebraska is the first state to take action against the Tennessee-based company, but Hilgers said he anticipates other states to follow suit.
He said his office is aggressively trying to get the case to a jury trial.
“We want Nebraska families, Lincoln families, Lincoln citizens, people who have been impacted by this, to be able to weigh in on determining the liability and the potential damages and penalties from this particular defendant," he said.
In the meantime, Hilgers said Nebraskans should be on the lookout for scammers calling about medical billing and report them to protectthegoodlife.nebraska.gov.