The Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court's holding that data breach claims were a covered publication. Travelers Indem. Co. of Am. v. Portal Healthcare Solutions, L.L.C., 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 6554 (4th Cir. April 11, 2016). A class-action complaint was filed against Portal Healthcare Solutions alleging that Portal allowed plaintiffs' private medical records to be posted on the internet and widely available for more than four months. Portal tendered the complaint to its insurer, Travelers. Travelers sued Portal for a declaratory judgment that it had no duty to defend Portal. Travelers maintained that because the class-action complaint failed to allege a covered publication, there was no coverage. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of Portal. The district court concluded that the complaint potentially alleged a publication of private medical information by Portal that constituted conduct covered by the policy. Such conduct, if proven, would have given unreasonable publicity to, and disclosed information about, patients' private lives because the information was available to anyone with an internet connection. The Fourth Circuit agreed that Travelers had a duty to defend against the class-action complaint. The reasoning of the district court was affirmed.
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