PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Current and former Rhode Island state employees have begun receiving payments from a settlement over a 2021 data breach involving RIPTA and UnitedHealthcare.
The payments — averaging more than $400 per claimant — are going out to state employees who filed claims as part of a class-action lawsuit the ACLU of Rhode Island filed against RIPTA and the insurer in 2022. The lawsuit was settled last year for more than $350,000.
The data breach affected 20,000 public employees, who had the option to sign onto the class-action lawsuit. Attorneys initially estimated payouts would average about $100 per person, which ultimately rose to more than $400 per person after fewer employees than expected submitted claims…