KP Bellfower Unsure if it Will Appeal Second Fine Connected to Octomom

Anderson says there is no indication that the snooping employees acted out of anything more sinister than simple curiosity. "As the thing became reported worldwide, it appears that people let their curiosity get the better of them," he says. "We have no indication and there is no indication in any media reports that any of these people ever gave that information to a third party."

KP Bellflower reported the breaches to CDPH, which launched the investigation and issued the penalties under a new California law that uses heavy fines and bad publicity to incentivize hospitals to protect patient confidentiality. Anderson says KP Bellflower has already paid the $250,000 fine, but hadn't yet determined if it would appeal the second fine. "It's too soon to say. We have people still looking at it," he says.

Despite the high-profile breaches, Anderson says KP Bellflower "believes extremely strongly in a patient's right to privacy and confidentiality." He says DCPH was made aware of the breaches only because the hospital conducted an internal investigation and notified the state.

"The vast majority of the staff in that hospital did exactly the right thing," Anderson says. "There were more than four dozen people who were involved in the delivery and the immediate moments after the births. They all managed to protect her privacy and the privacy of her children."