Here are five things to know.
1. A resident called the department May 10 after finding 2015 Medicaid claim resolution worksheets in a Bismarck, N.D., dumpster.
2. The department immediately recovered the worksheets and launched an investigation. The investigation revealed one employee had improperly discarded the documents May 8. Officials said there was no malicious intent and the department used appropriate disciplinary action, according to the news release.
3. The documents included PHI such as Medicaid recipients’ names, dates of birth, Medicaid ID numbers and diagnosis codes, among other information. The documents did not contain Social Security numbers, addresses or individual financial information. The incident did not affect Expansion or Children’s Health Insurance Program participants.
4. There was “no evidence that any confidential information [had] been used improperly or further disclosed,” according to the news release. “Because the documents were recovered, the department believes the risk of re-disclosure of information to other unauthorized individuals is low.”
5. The department is reviewing its information security policies and procedures to prevent future privacy incidents, according to the news release. It will also offer affected Medicaid recipients one year of free credit and identity theft monitoring.
Click here to view the patient notification.
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