Wayne Memorial Hospital Data Breach Settlement, Check If You Qualify Bates, et al. v. Wayne Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, Inc., No. SUCV2025000239

There’s money on the table if your information was caught up in the Wayne Memorial Hospital data breach — but only if you file by December 7, 2026. Wayne Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, Inc. agreed to settle Bates, et al. v. Wayne Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, Inc., No. SUCV2025000239, in the Superior Court of Wayne County, State of Georgia, over a Data Incident discovered around June 3, 2024. You have until December 7, 2026, to file a claim.

Wayne Memorial Hospital Data Breach Settlement — Key Facts

Detail	Information
Settlement Amount	UNVERIFIED — no aggregate settlement fund total is disclosed in the notice; benefits are instead capped per category (see Money section below)
Claim Deadline	December 7, 2026
Who Qualifies	Individuals who received notice that their Private Information was potentially accessed in the Data Incident discovered around June 3, 2024
Estimated Payout	Up to $5,000 with documented losses, or an estimated $25 flat payment with no proof needed
Proof Required (Yes/No)	Only for the documented-losses option; no for the flat cash option or credit monitoring
Settlement Status	Notice issued; awaiting final court approval
Court & Case Number	Superior Court of Wayne County, State of Georgia — No. SUCV2025000239
Law Alleged	UNVERIFIED — the notice describes claims of negligence, breach of implied contract, and unjust enrichment; no specific data-breach statute is named
Administrator	CPT Group, Inc.
Official Claim Site	wmhdatasettlement.com
Last Updated	September 12, 2026

Who Is Wayne Memorial Hospital and Why Are They Being Sued Over This Data Incident?

Wayne Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, Inc., doing business as Wayne Memorial Hospital, is a hospital in Jesup, Georgia, that holds the kind of patient records — names, contact details, and other private information — that make healthcare providers a constant target for unauthorized access. The hospital discovered that files may have been accessed without authorization sometime between approximately May 30 and June 3, 2024, and didn’t notify potentially affected people until around August 27, 2025 — more than a year later. That gap between discovery and notice is exactly the kind of delay plaintiffs point to when they argue a hospital didn’t do enough, fast enough, to protect the data it was holding.

What Did Wayne Memorial Hospital Do to Patients Between May 2024 and August 2025?

Unauthorized third parties potentially gained access to Wayne Memorial Hospital’s computer systems between roughly May 30 and June 3, 2024. The hospital says it discovered the incident on or around June 3, 2024, but the notices telling people their information may have been exposed didn’t go out until around August 27, 2025.

The lawsuit claims the hospital was negligent in protecting patient data and points to breach of implied contract and unjust enrichment as additional legal theories — the idea being that patients paid for care with an unspoken expectation their information would stay secure. Wayne Memorial Hospital denies all of the allegations and isn’t admitting wrongdoing by agreeing to settle, but it did agree to fund cash payments, credit monitoring, and attorneys’ fees rather than keep fighting the case in court.

If your notice letter mentioned this Data Incident, that fourteen-month gap between the breach and the warning is the whole reason this settlement exists — and it’s worth acting on before the December 7 deadline closes it.

Who Qualifies for the Wayne Memorial Hospital Data Breach Settlement?

Here’s exactly how to know if the Wayne Memorial Hospital settlement includes you.

• Anyone who received a notice from Wayne Memorial Hospital saying their Private Information may have been involved in the Data Incident discovered around June 3, 2024
• People unsure whether they got a notice can confirm their status by calling the settlement administrator or checking the official settlement site
• Current and former patients whose records were held by the hospital during the access window are the group the notice was sent to
• Directors and officers of the hospital, government entities, the assigned judge and their immediate family, and court staff are excluded from the class
• Anyone who timely opts out of the settlement is also excluded and gives up the right to file a claim

Who does NOT qualify: people who never received a notice letter, hospital directors and officers, government entities, and anyone who opts out by the November 7, 2026 deadline.

Wayne Memorial Hospital Settlement Members Outside Georgia — Are You Still Covered?

Yes. Coverage depends on whether your Private Information was in the affected files, not on where you live. Patients from outside Georgia who received a notice letter are covered the same as Georgia residents.

If you got a notice letter in the mail, you’re already confirmed as a class member — there’s no separate eligibility check to pass beyond that.

Not sure if you qualify for the Wayne Memorial Hospital data breach settlement? A free consultation with a data privacy attorney can help before the December 7, 2026 claim deadline.

How Much Can Wayne Memorial Hospital Data Breach Settlement Class Members Get? Up to $5,000 Per Person

Every class member can choose one of two cash options. Cash Payment A covers documented losses — actual, unreimbursed money lost to fraud or identity theft that’s more likely than not tied to this breach — up to $5,000 per person, but it requires real documentation to back the claim. Cash Payment B is a flat alternate payment estimated at $25 with no proof required, though that pool is capped at $300,000 total and gets reduced pro rata if too many people choose it. On top of either cash option, every class member is automatically entitled to two years of single-bureau credit monitoring plus $1,000,000 in identity theft insurance — no claim form needed for that part. Payments over $600 may appear on a 1099; check with a tax professional if your documented-loss claim reaches that level.

Wayne Memorial Payout With Proof — Up to $5,000

Documented losses need to be real, unreimbursed, dated on or after the breach, and tied to a reasonable effort to avoid or recover the loss elsewhere first. A personal statement alone doesn’t count as documentation — you need receipts, statements, or similar records.

Wayne Memorial Payout Without Proof — Estimated $25

Choosing the no-proof option means skipping the paperwork, but it also means capping your payout well below the $5,000 ceiling available to people who can document an actual loss.

What Pro-Rata Means for Your Wayne Memorial Check

The $300,000 cap on flat $25 payments means if a lot of people pick that option, each payment could shrink below $25. More people claiming the flat cash option stretches the same capped pool thinner for everyone who chose it.

Class Counsel is asking for up to $525,000 in attorneys’ fees and up to $17,500 split across seven named plaintiffs — money that comes separately from what Defendant pays, not out of the $300,000 flat-cash pool, but still worth knowing as you weigh whether documenting your loss is worth the extra effort.

How to File Your Wayne Memorial Hospital Data Breach Settlement Claim — Step by Step

1. Go to the official claim site at wmhdatasettlement.com
2. Enter your unique ID and Passcode from the notice you received, along with your name, address, phone number, and email
3. Choose Cash Payment A (documented losses) or Cash Payment B (flat estimated $25), but not both
4. If you’re claiming documented losses, upload the receipts, statements, or other records that support your claim
5. Submit and save your confirmation before the December 7, 2026 deadline
6. Separately enroll in credit monitoring through the credit monitoring portal using the enrollment code from your notice — this step isn’t automatic just because you filed a cash claim

Takes about 10 minutes for the flat-cash option, longer if you’re gathering documentation for Cash Payment A.

Should Wayne Memorial Hospital Settlement Class Members Opt Out or Object Before November 7, 2026?

What Opting Out of the Wayne Memorial Hospital Settlement Actually Means

Opting out means no cash payment and no credit monitoring, but you keep the right to sue the hospital on your own over the same data breach. Most people shouldn’t opt out without legal advice, since giving up a documented $5,000 ceiling and free credit monitoring for an uncertain lawsuit is a real trade-off. The opt-out deadline is November 7, 2026.

How to Object to the Wayne Memorial Hospital Settlement

Objecting means you stay in the class and can still get paid, but you tell the court in writing why you disagree with part of the deal. This objection form is unusually detailed — it requires you to disclose whether you or your attorney used AI to help draft it, list any past objections you’ve filed to other class settlements in the last five years, and state whether you plan to speak at the hearing. Objections must be mailed to the Clerk of Court, Class Counsel, Defendant’s Counsel, and the Settlement Administrator by November 7, 2026.

Talk to a class action lawsuit attorney before November 7, 2026, if you’re considering either option.

Wayne Memorial Hospital Data Breach Settlement — Key Dates, 2026

Milestone	Date
Notice Sent to Affected Individuals	August 27, 2025
Claim Filing Deadline	December 7, 2026
Opt-Out Deadline	November 7, 2026
Objection Deadline	November 7, 2026
Final Approval Hearing	January 27, 2027
Expected Payment Date	UNVERIFIED — set after final approval; no exact date announced

Wayne Memorial Hospital Data Breach Settlement — Frequently Asked Questions, No. SUCV2025000239

Do I need a lawyer to file a Wayne Memorial Hospital data breach settlement claim?

 No. You can file directly at the official settlement site using the unique ID and Passcode from your notice. A lawyer isn’t required for either cash option.

Is the Wayne Memorial Hospital data breach settlement legitimate? 

Yes. It’s a real settlement in Bates, et al. v. Wayne Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, Inc., No. SUCV2025000239, pending in the Superior Court of Wayne County, State of Georgia, with a final approval hearing set for January 27, 2027.

When will Wayne Memorial Hospital settlement payments be sent? 

Payments go out after the settlement receives final court approval and becomes final. No exact payment date has been announced yet.

What if I missed the Wayne Memorial claim deadline? 

Claims must be postmarked or submitted online by December 7, 2026. There’s no stated grace period for late claims described in the notice.

Will my Wayne Memorial settlement payment go on a 1099? 

Possibly, if your documented-loss claim exceeds $600. Payments over $600 may appear on a 1099 — check with a tax professional about your situation.

Do I have to submit a claim to get credit monitoring? 

No. Every class member is automatically entitled to two years of credit monitoring and $1,000,000 in identity theft insurance using the enrollment code sent with the notice, regardless of whether you file for cash.

What happens if I do nothing at all?

 You’ll still receive the credit monitoring enrollment code, but you won’t get a cash payment, and you give up the right to sue the hospital separately over this breach.

How much could Wayne Memorial Hospital data breach settlement class members get? 

Up to $5,000 with documented losses, or an estimated $25 with no proof required, capped at a shared $300,000 pool for that option — plus free credit monitoring either way.

Sources Used in This Wayne Memorial Hospital Data Breach Article

• Official Settlement Notice — Bates, et al. v. Wayne Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, Inc., No. SUCV2025000239 (Superior Court of Wayne County, GA): https://www.wmhdatasettlement.com/Content/Docs/Long%20Form%20Notice.pdf
• Official Settlement Website: https://www.wmhdatasettlement.com/
• Settlement Agreement: https://www.wmhdatasettlement.com/Content/Docs/SettlementAgreement.pdf
• Credit Monitoring Enrollment Portal: https://www.wmhdatasettlement.com/CreditMonitoring/CreditMonitoring

Researched and written by Israr Ahmad, legal content researcher and founder of AllAboutLawyer.com. All facts verified against the official Bates v. Wayne Memorial Hospital settlement notice and settlement website (wmhdatasettlement.com), as of September 12, 2026. Last Updated: September 12, 2026.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Laws vary by state and individual circumstances differ. For advice about your specific situation, consult a qualified attorney.