Cybersecurity

In the changing digital health era, Timothy Noonan, deputy director for Health Information Privacy at the HHS Office for Civil Rights, is constantly reviewing HIPAA and privacy standards to ensure patient information is safe and in the right hands.

The number of patients affected by data breaches more than doubled from 2018 to 2019, with more than 27 million people impacted this past year, according to a Bitglass report released Feb. 19. 

Throughout the past two months, hospitals, health systems and other healthcare organizations have had to juggle an increasing number of ransomware attacks. These attacks have caused hospitals to reschedule surgeries and spend millions of dollars to recover. 

Hospital software provider NRC Health is notifying its affiliated hospitals that it was targeted in a ransomware attack Feb. 11, a spokesperson confirmed to CNBC. 

Byron Center, Mich.-based Mercy Health Physician Partners Southwest began notifying 2,487 patients Feb. 10 that their information may have been exposed in a mailing error.

Wichita Falls, Texas-based United Regional Health Care System has alerted an undisclosed number of patients about a phishing attack that may have exposed their information.

Latham, N.Y.-based Community Care Physician began notifying an undisclosed number of patients Feb. 14 that their information may have been affected in a ransomware attack at third-party accounting vendor BST & Co.

Bellevue, Wash.-based Overlake Medical Center & Clinics, a 364-bed nonprofit community hospital, began alerting 109,000 patients Feb. 7 that their information may have been exposed in a phishing attack.

Following an October 2019 ransomware attack, MyEyeDr. Optometry of Colorado began notifying patients Feb. 7 that their protected health information information may have been exposed.

Two patients filed a lawsuit Feb. 10 against Hackensack (N.J.) Meridian Health alleging the health system failed to protect their information.