While some security incidents only affected less than 1 percent of membership populations, others were said to have affected more than 40,000.
Here are 16 healthcare privacy incidents reported by Becker’s Hospital Review in November:
Editor’s note: Incidents are presented in order of the number of patients or organizations reportedly affected.
1. State insurance provider TennCare began notifying 43,847 members Nov. 8 that their information may have been exposed in a security incident at the agency’s pharmacy management vendor.
2. Minneapolis-based Children’s Minnesota recently notified 37,942 patients about a system error that may have exposed their protected health information.
3. Portland, Maine-based InterMed began notifying approximately 30,000 patients Nov. 5 regarding a cybersecurity incident that may have exposed their information.
4. Saco, Maine-based Sweetser notified 22,000 patients Oct. 25 about a data breach that may have affected their protected health information.
5. Provo-based Utah Valley Eye Center confirmed that the demographic information of more than 20,000 patients may have been exposed in a cybersecurity incident last year.
6. The University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Medicine began notifying 3,716 patients Nov. 12 that their information may have been exposed in a phishing attack.
7. Mishawaka, Ind.-based Select Health Network is notifying 3,582 patients about a data breach that may have exposed their personal health information.
8. Florida Blue announced Nov. 8 that it is notifying less than 1 percent of its members that their information may have been exposed in a data breach at a third-party vendor
9. Cape Girardeau, Mo.-based Saint Francis Healthcare System began notifying patients Nov. 20 about a ransomware attack at the system’s Ferguson Medical Group.
10. Rocky Hill, Conn.-based Starling Physicians mailed letters to an undisclosed number of patients Nov. 12 about a security incident that may have exposed patient information.
11. Durham, N.C.-based Main Street Clinical Associates announced Nov. 8 that it is notifying an undisclosed number of patients about a security incident.
12. Solara Medical Supplies announced Nov. 13 that it has notified current and former patients and employees Nov. 13 that their information may have been exposed in a data breach.
13. Salem (Ore.) Health notified patients that their information may have been exposed in a data breach.
14. DNA-testing startup Veritas Genetics experienced a data breach that may have exposed consumers’ information.
15. A limited number of patients within Washington University School of Medicine’s ophthalmology and visual sciences department may have had their information viewed by an unauthorized person.
16. New York City-based Brooklyn Hospital Center notified an undisclosed number of patients about a cybersecurity incident that may have exposed their information.
More articles on cybersecurity:
Dr. David Feinberg responds to criticism of Ascension, Google project
Indiana physician group warns 3,500 patients of data breach
Ascension’s Eduardo Conrado: Fulfilling the promise of digital health information
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