More than 450,000 Maryland residents were among those potentially affected by a massive data breach involving Labcorp patient information, according to Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown.

Maryland has joined a bipartisan coalition of 44 attorneys general in reaching a $2.3 million multistate settlement with Laboratory Corporation of America, better known as Labcorp, following an investigation into the 2019 breach.

The breach occurred at Labcorp’s debt collector, Retrieval-Masters Creditors Bureau, which operated as American Medical Collection Agency (AMCA). It potentially exposed personal information belonging to more than 27.5 million people nationwide, including approximately 10.2 million Labcorp patients.

According to the Maryland Attorney General’s Office, 451,558 Maryland residents were among those potentially affected. Although the breach occurred at AMCA, the sensitive information involved had been collected by Labcorp and belonged to its patients. The settlement centers in part on companies’ responsibilities to protect sensitive information when sharing it with outside vendors.

“Marylanders trust healthcare companies to protect their most sensitive medical information, even when that information is shared with outside vendors,” Brown said. “This settlement holds Labcorp accountable for failing in that duty and requires the company to maintain stronger vendor oversight to prevent this kind of breach from happening again.”

Under the settlement, Labcorp will be required to strengthen its information security program and vendor oversight practices. Requirements include expanding its incident response plan to address vendor security incidents, minimizing the amount of information shared with vendors and maintaining a dedicated vendor risk management team.

Labcorp will also be required to impose additional cybersecurity requirements on debt collectors handling its information and hire an independent third-party assessor to evaluate its information security practices with a focus on vendor risk management.

The settlement follows a separate 2021 multistate settlement with AMCA that included a $21 million payment that was suspended because of the company’s bankruptcy.

Maryland was part of the executive committee involved in the Labcorp investigation, which was led by the attorneys general of Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Texas.

The Federal Reserve Board has issued an enforcement action against a former Sandy Spring Bank employee who authorities say misappropriated approximately $246,000 while working at a Silver Spring branch.

According to an order released by the Federal Reserve on Thursday, September 24, Renee Nicole Brown worked as a teller supervisor at a Sandy Spring Bank branch in Silver Spring until she was terminated in August 2024. 

The Federal Reserve said Brown misappropriated approximately $246,000 from teller cash dispenser machines between June 2023 and July 2024. Brown later pleaded guilty and, on May 4, 2026, was convicted under Maryland law of a “Theft Scheme.” She received probation and was ordered to make partial restitution to the bank, according to the order. 

The Federal Reserve’s consent order prohibits Brown from participating in the affairs of an insured depository institution or certain other financial institutions without prior regulatory approval. The prohibition includes serving as an officer, director or employee of covered institutions. The order remains in effect unless it is stayed, modified, terminated or suspended in writing by the Federal Reserve. 

Sandy Spring Bank, which was headquartered in Olney, has since merged with Atlantic Union Bank. The Federal Reserve noted that the merger occurred after the misconduct described in the order. 

Starbucks is permanently closing its Downtown Frederick location at 104 N. Market St., making it another Maryland store included in the company’s planned closure of approximately 250 underperforming locations across North America.

A notice posted at the Downtown Frederick store states that Starbucks has “made the very difficult decision to close this Starbucks location by the end of this week.”

“We know this may be hard to hear – because this isn’t just any store,” the notice reads. “It’s your coffeehouse, a place woven into your daily rhythm, where memories were made and meaningful connections with our partners grew.” Starbucks said it is working to support employees through the transition and directed customers to other nearby locations.

The Frederick closure comes as Starbucks moves forward with a broader round of store closures across North America. The company announced Thursday that approximately 250 underperforming locations would close.

At least two Montgomery County Starbucks locations are also closing as part of the changes. The Starbucks at 11802 Grand Park Ave. at Pike & Rose in North Bethesda is expected to close permanently on Sunday, while the Starbucks at White Oak Town Center, located at 12255 Prosperity Dr. in Silver Spring, is expected to close Saturday.

The Pike & Rose location initially had a sign posted Thursday stating that it was “temporarily closed” and that Starbucks was working to reopen the store. By Friday morning, that notice had been replaced with the same type of permanent-closure notice now posted at the Downtown Frederick location.

The Pike & Rose closure comes almost exactly one year after Starbucks mistakenly notified customers that the location would close in September 2025. Employees told The MoCoShow at the time that the notice had been sent in error, and the store ultimately remained open for another year.

The White Oak Town Center location opened less than two years ago. Starbucks has not indicated that the current round of closures will affect every market equally. Spencer Allen Brooks of WUSA9 previously reported that a Starbucks at 1734 L St. NW in Washington DC is also closing, while no Northern Virginia locations were expected to close as part of the announced changes.