Welcome Packets Exposed Data of 1,526 Medi-Cal Members

FAIRFIELD — Partnership HealthPlan of California, the Medi-Cal plan for Sierra, Plumas, and Nevada counties, said Friday that welcome packets it mailed to new members over the summer contained other members’ personal information. The plan said the packets, mailed between May and July, disclosed information belonging to 1,526 members, all of whom have been notified.

The information was limited to names, dates of birth, and member identification numbers, Partnership said. Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, addresses, treatment information, diagnoses, and financial account information were not involved, according to the plan.

Partnership is a nonprofit plan that contracts with the state to administer Medi-Cal benefits, and it has covered Sierra, Plumas, and Nevada counties since January 1, 2024, when it took over Medi-Cal managed care in ten Northern California counties. As of July, it served 787 members in Sierra County, 5,225 in Plumas County, and 27,582 in Nevada County, or between 26 and 28 percent of each county’s population. Partnership’s announcement did not say how many of the 1,526 affected members live in any one county.

“Protecting the privacy of the members we serve is one of our highest priorities, and we regret any concern this incident may have caused,” said Danielle Ogren, Partnership’s compliance and privacy officer. “We have taken immediate steps to investigate and contain this issue and have strengthened our safeguards, so this does not happen again.”

Partnership said it investigated the mailings, secured the affected records, tightened its mailing and privacy safeguards, increased oversight of its vendors, and gave its workforce additional training. The plan said it also reported the incident to applicable regulatory agencies as required.

Members who are concerned should watch their health records and claims for care they do not recognize, Partnership said. Members who believe information in their online member portal is wrong can call Member Services at 1-800-863-4155, or 1-800-735-2929 for TTY users, Monday through Friday from 8 AM to 5 PM, at no cost.

The disclosure is far smaller than a 2022 breach of Partnership’s computer network, which was reported to regulators as affecting more than 850,000 current and former members. Partnership told members at the time that an unauthorized party had reached its network on March 19, 2022, and that the information involved could include Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, medical record numbers, treatments, diagnoses, and prescriptions. The plan paid for two years of credit monitoring for those members.