Case research · Sources checked October 12, 2026
Advocate Aurora Health website / MyChart tracking pixel class action (settled)
Plaintiffs, Advocate Aurora Health patients, alleged that the health system embedded tracking pixels on its public websites, LiveWell app and MyChart patient portal that disclosed their personally identifying information and protected health information to third parties including Meta/Facebook and Google without consent. The consolidated cases were resolved by a class settlement; the court's approval orders describe the allegations and do not adjudicate liability, and the defendant did not admit wrongdoing in the record reviewed.
Every line on this page is checked against the court docket and the regulators involved. We do not decide whether you are part of this case or match you with a lawyer. What we do is help you get the medical records that matter, from any provider.
- Status
- Settlement
- Court
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
- Docket
- 2:22-cv-01253-JPS
- Judge
- Hon. J.P. Stadtmueller
- Started
- October 24, 2022
- Defendants
- Advocate Aurora Health, Inc.
Where it stands
As of October 12, 2026
Closed. The court preliminarily approved a class settlement on August 21, 2023, held a fairness hearing in March 2024, and on July 10, 2024 granted final approval, certified the settlement class, granted in part the fee motion, and dismissed the consolidated action and all member cases (ECF No. 54). The claims period has ended; the court's order records 570,963 claims submitted, 565,543 validated, 71 opt-outs and 5 timely objections.[2]
On the record
What the regulators and the court have said
- 01
HHS OCR's bulletin 'Use of Online Tracking Technologies by HIPAA Covered Entities and Business Associates' states that tracking technologies on user-authenticated pages such as patient portals generally have access to PHI, that tracking vendors handling PHI are business associates requiring a business associate agreement, and that privacy-policy disclosures and cookie banners are not HIPAA authorizations.[3]
- 02
On June 20, 2024 the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas (American Hospital Association v. Becerra, No. 4:23-cv-01110-P) declared unlawful and vacated the bulletin's 'Proscribed Combination' concerning IP addresses combined with visits to unauthenticated public health webpages, while leaving the remainder of the guidance operative.[4]
Timeline
How the case has moved
Initial complaint filed in the lead case following Advocate Aurora's October 22, 2022 patient notification about tracking pixels.[2]
Amended consolidated complaint filed; second amended (operative) complaint filed May 5, 2023.[2]
Parties inform the court they have reached a settlement.[2]
Order Granting Preliminary Approval of Class Action Settlement (ECF No. 36): settlement class of U.S. residents whose personal or health information was or may have been disclosed through a tracking pixel on Advocate Aurora's websites, LiveWell App or MyChart portal between October 24, 2017 and October 22, 2022; objection and opt-out deadline December 19, 2023; final approval hearing set for March 8, 2024.[1]
Fairness (final approval) hearing held in Milwaukee.[2]
Order granting final approval of the class settlement, certifying the settlement class, granting in part the fee/expense/service-award motion, sustaining in part one objection and overruling the rest, and dismissing the consolidated action and all member cases (ECF No. 54).[2]
If this involves you
The records that matter, and who has them.
Whatever you decide to do next, you will be asked for these. They are yours by law, and most providers have up to 30 days to send them once they have your signed request.
Advocate Aurora's October 22, 2022 notification letter or notice about tracking pixels
The settlement class period ends on the date of this notice and the order references it; it is the provider's own description of what was used and where.
Held by: The patient (mailed/emailed notice); Advocate Aurora Health privacy office
MyChart patient portal account records and access/audit logs, and LiveWell app account history, for October 24, 2017 to October 22, 2022
Shows use of the authenticated portal and app during the class period, which is how the settlement class was defined.
Held by: Advocate Aurora Health (health information management / privacy office) on request
Medical and billing records establishing you were an Advocate Aurora patient during the class period
Confirms the patient relationship and dates relevant to the class definition.
Held by: Advocate Aurora Health medical records and billing departments
Your Facebook data download ('Your activity off Meta technologies')
Shows whether Meta recorded activity attributed to your account from Advocate Aurora web properties.
Held by: Meta, via account settings
Any claim form confirmation, settlement administrator correspondence or payment record
Documents participation in the completed settlement; the claims deadline has passed and the case is dismissed.
Held by: Kroll Settlement Administration (court-appointed administrator) and the class member's own records
We send the request, follow up with the provider, and deliver the records to you. We don't take case details here and we never share your records with a law firm unless you tell us to.
Questions people ask
Straight answers, with sources
Was the Advocate Aurora pixel lawsuit real, and what happened?
Yes. In re Advocate Aurora Health Pixel Litigation, No. 2:22-cv-01253 (E.D. Wis.), consolidated five related cases alleging tracking pixels disclosed patient information to third parties. The court granted final approval of a class settlement on July 10, 2024 and dismissed the cases.[2]
Who was in the settlement class?
U.S. residents whose personal or health information was or may have been disclosed to a third party without authorization through a tracking pixel on Advocate Aurora's websites, LiveWell App or MyChart patient portal between October 24, 2017 and October 22, 2022, with standard exclusions.[1]
Can I still file a claim?
The court-set claim, objection and opt-out deadlines passed in late 2023 and early 2024, and the case was dismissed after final approval on July 10, 2024. The court's order reports 570,963 claims were submitted.[2]
Did the court find Advocate Aurora violated HIPAA?
No. A settlement approval order evaluates whether the settlement is fair, reasonable and adequate; it does not decide the merits of the allegations.[2]
Sources
Where every fact on this page comes from
Primary sources only: court orders, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, federal regulators and state attorneys general. Each entry shows the day we opened it. This is reference material, not legal or medical advice.
- [1]Order Granting Preliminary Approval of Class Action Settlement (ECF No. 36)
U.S. District Court, E.D. Wis., via CourtListener RECAP archive · storage.courtlistener.com · opened October 12, 2026
Aug. 21, 2023; Judge J.P. Stadtmueller; class definition and class period; Dec. 19, 2023 objection/opt-out deadline; Mar. 8, 2024 hearing.
- [2]Order granting final approval of class action settlement and granting in part motion for attorneys' fees (ECF No. 54)
U.S. District Court, E.D. Wis., via CourtListener RECAP archive · storage.courtlistener.com · opened October 12, 2026
July 10, 2024 final approval, settlement class certified, cases dismissed; claim/opt-out/objection counts.
- [3]Use of Online Tracking Technologies by HIPAA Covered Entities and Business Associates
HHS Office for Civil Rights · hhs.gov · opened October 12, 2026
OCR guidance on tracking technologies; notes partial vacatur.
- [4]American Hospital Association v. Becerra, Opinion & Order (ECF No. 67)
U.S. District Court, N.D. Tex., via GovInfo · govinfo.gov · opened October 12, 2026
June 20, 2024 vacatur of the 'Proscribed Combination.'