A federal judge in Pennsylvania is allowing a patients' proposed class action against Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals to move forward, which alleges the online health portal used Meta's tracking and collection tools to sell targeted advertisements, among other things.

In a Sept. 30 decision, U.S. District Judge Cynthia M. Rufe of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania denied Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals' motion to dismiss Nancy Murphy and Robert Stewart's proposed class action, which brought an Electronic Communications Privacy Act claim (ECPA), as well as claims for breach of contract, negligence, invasion of privacy, and unjust enrichment. In Murphy v. Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals, the plaintiffs alleged that the health system, which offers online accounts for patients via the MyJeffersonHealth online portal and mobile application, uses Meta's collection tools to gather their personal health information.