Californians delighted by $68 settlement payouts — how to know if you’re getting money

Californians are waking up to an unexpected payday as $68.81 payments from a Sutter Health class-action settlement begin landing in bank accounts and digital wallets.

The payments stem from a lawsuit accusing Sutter Health of sharing patients’ personal information without their consent. Sutter Health has denied wrongdoing but agreed to pay $21.5 million to resolve the case.

The settlement is now being distributed to eligible claimants, with payments beginning Aug. 21 and expected to continue through Oct. 4.

So, who gets the money?

Anyone in California who logged into the Sutter Health MyHealthOnline patient portal between June 10, 2015, and March 20, 2020, was eligible to submit a claim.

The catch: the deadline to file a claim has already passed. That means Californians who never submitted a claim cannot sign up now for a share of the settlement.

Those who did file a valid claim should receive $68.81, although the amount was initially expected to be higher.

Settlement administrators had projected payments could reach as much as $90 per person. But the final payout was reduced after a large number of eligible claims were submitted.

Sutter Health currently says it provides care to about 3.6 million people, meaning the pool of potentially eligible Californians was substantial.

The money can arrive in several different ways, depending on the payment method selected when the claim was submitted.

Recipients could receive their payout through Venmo, PayPal or Zelle, while others may get a traditional paper check.

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