Cybersecurity news for hospitals and health systems

President Joe Biden is preparing a slew of actions, including sanctions, to stop hackers from being paid ransoms using digital currency platforms, The Wall Street Journal reported Sept. 17. 

Six vendor's data breaches have exposed 9,970,368 patients and information from more than 200 hospitals and health systems in the last year.

Below are seven hospitals and health systems that have experienced nine cases of employees snooping patients' medical records in the last year.

Austin (Texas) Cancer Centers began notifying 36,503 patients of a data breach that forced it to shut down its IT networks, according to data shared with the Maine attorney general's office.

The Federal Trade Commission confirmed Sept. 15 that non-HIPAA covered entities such as health apps and connected devices that collect or use consumers' health information must comply with the agency's breach notification rule. 

An administrative officer at a Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Washington, D.C., is under investigation for tweeting details of a veteran's surgery and mocking the procedure as a waste of taxpayer money, according to a Sept. 14 Military Times report.

Portland, Ore.-based Southeast Health Center began notifying about 700 patients Sept. 14 that their personal information was recently exposed during a break-in at the facility. 

CoxHealth warned patients Sept. 14 of a phone scam in which someone posing as the Springfield, Mo.-based health system tries to sell patients medical equipment or steal their personal information. 

Houston-based Gastroenterology Consultants began notifying 162,000 patients their data may have been exposed in a ransomware attack more than seven months after the attack, according to a Sept. 9 report by Houston-based KHOU 11.

Jackson Health System in Miami, Fla., is investigating a nurse who allegedly posted photos mocking a neonatal intensive care unit patient on social media, CBS Miami reported Sept. 12.