Allina Health alerts 6,100 patients of documents trashed without shredding

Minneapolis-based Allina Health System is notifying more than 6,100 patients that documents containing their personal information were thrown away in the trash, rather than a secure shredder.

Allina is informing all patients treated at the system's Isles Clinic between April 6 and Oct. 27, when the potential breach was discovered, although the number of those affected is "undoubtedly lower" than the number notified, according to an emailed statement from an Allina spokesperson to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

The disposed documents may have included patient birthdates, medical record numbers, addresses, names, clinical information and some Social Security numbers. Since the incident was discovered, the clinic said it has retrained staff about secure document disposal procedures, installed containers clearly marked for shredding, and offered free data and privacy protection services to its patients.

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