10 data breaches impacting physician practices in 100 days

Orthopedic practices are appearing with notable frequency on data breach disclosures — and the settlements are steep. Five orthopedic groups alone disclosed incidents or resolved class-action lawsuits in the past 100 days, with payouts reaching as high as $4 million. 

For spine and orthopedic practices, which hold extensive patient records and imaging data, the message is clear: cybersecurity is no longer a back-office concern. It belongs in the same conversation as malpractice and compliance risk. 

Here are 10 data breaches and settlements affecting physician practices, as reported by Becker’s since April 20:

Note: This list is not exhaustive.

1. Palos Park-based Heart Care Centers of Illinois provided notice of a data security breach.
2. Columbia (Mo.) Orthopaedic Group suffered a data breach impacting patient information.
3. Chattanooga (Tenn.) Heart Institute agreed to pay $3.75 million to settle a class-action lawsuit stemming from a 2023 security incident.
4. Santa Barbara, Calif.-based Alta Orthopaedics provided notice of a data incident that may have impacted patient information.
5. Miami-based Gastro Health, a GI practice with a network of 207 locations, provided notice of a data security incident.
6. St. Louis-based Esse Health, an independent physician group with 45 locations, agreed to pay $2.53 million to settle a class-action lawsuit stemming from a 2025 data breach.
7. Denver-based Western Orthopaedics experienced a data incident impacting patient information.
8. Tri-Cities Gastroenterology, a GI practice with five locations in Tennessee, suffered a data breach.
9. Des Plaines, Ill.-based Illinois Bone & Joint Institute agreed to pay $4 million to settle a class-action lawsuit stemming from a 2024 security incident.
10. Bethesda, Md.-based Aligned Orthopedic Partners learned of a data security incident that may have impacted patient information.

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