Maria Perez
Maria is an experienced writer, providing content for Healthcare Industry News since 2021. Working as a senior writer, Maria focuses on news reporting, making the complex healthcare topic comprehensible for readers. Maria’s expertise and dedication to delivering accurate stories make him a trusted source on our site.
by Maria Perez | Feb 1, 2022 | Compliance News
Advocates Inc. in Massachusetts., a non-profit provider of support services for people encountering life challenges including autism, brain injury, addiction intellectual handicaps, behavioral health, and mental health, has reported it recently suffered a sophisticated cyberattack and data theft occurrence.
Advocates discovered on October 1, 2021, that an unauthorized person had obtained access to its system and copied files comprising the sensitive data of patients and staff members. A prominent cybersecurity agency was engaged to aid with the inquiry, which revealed that an anonymous individual had accessed its network and duplicated files in a period of four days between September 14, 2021 and September 18, 2021.
The files included names, birth dates, addresses, Social Security numbers, medical insurance details, client ID numbers, diagnoses, and treatment details. After validating the individuals impacted, Advocate compiled updated contact data to be able to issue the written notifications, thus the delay in providing notification letters.
The cyberattack report was sent to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and government authorities. The breach report sent to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights reveals the protected health information (PHI) of 68,236 persons was contained in the stolen information. Advocates mentioned it doesn’t know if any actual or attempted improper use of the stolen data; nevertheless, as a preventative measure, affected people were provided free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services.
PHI Compromised in Cyberattack on Medical Healthcare Solutions
The medical billing firm Medical Healthcare Solutions located in Boston, MA has lately reported it encountered a cyberattack. The attack was identified on November 19, 2021, and steps were promptly taken to safeguard its system to stop more unauthorized access. The investigation established an unauthorized person had acquired access to its network from October 1, 2021 to October 4, 2021, and stolen a number of files from its system.
An analysis of the stolen records showed they comprised these types of information: Name, address, birth date, sex, telephone number, email address, driver’s license/state ID number, Social Security number, financial account number, payment card number, card CVV/expiration, routing number, diagnosis/treatment details, procedure type, provider name, prescription data, date of service, patient account number, medical record number insurance group number, insurance ID number, insurance plan name, claim number, provider ID number, process code, treatment price, and diagnosis code.
A final record of persons impacted by the breach was secured on January 8, and notification letters were already distributed. Free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services were given to affected people. The breach report was submitted to the HHS’ Office for Civil Rights, nevertheless, it has not yet been posted on the breach site, therefore it is presently not clear how many persons were impacted.
by Maria Perez | Jan 18, 2022 | Compliance News
The digital pharmacy and health application creator Ravkoo in Auburndale, FL has begun informing selected patients concerning an unauthorized person who accessed and likely stole their sensitive personal information.
Ravkoo makes use of Amazon Web Services (AWS) to host its online prescription site. The site suffered a cyberattack that was noticed on September 27, 2021. After the knowledge of the data breach, Ravkoo took prompt action to safeguard the website and engaged third-party cybersecurity specialists to aid in the forensic investigation, mitigation, recovery, and remediation initiatives.
The investigation established the compromise of sensitive patient data, which include names, telephone numbers, addresses, a number of prescription details, and limited medical information. Ravkoo explained the affected site didn’t include any Social Security numbers, which are not retained in the impacted portal. The forensic investigation uncovered no proof that suggested the improper use of data stored in the portal.
Ravkoo already submitted the cyberattack report to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and is helping with the inquiry. Ravkoo likewise has employed forensics professionals to assess the security of its AWS system. Steps are currently being undertaken to strengthen security to avert other data breaches down the road.
The security breach report has been sent to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights stating that approximately 105,000 persons were impacted. Affected people are being given free use of Kroll’s online credit monitoring service as a preventative measure, which consists of access to resolution services in the eventuality of identity theft.
The Intercept’s Micah Lee mentioned in a September 28, 2021 Twitter update that an attacker had taken responsibility for the cyberattack on Ravkoo and stated the patient site was “hilariously easy” to get into and needed the usage of a secret admin website that any user can sign in to and get patient records.
by Maria Perez | Jan 12, 2022 | Compliance News
Anthem Inc. has notified 2,003 people that an unauthorized person possibly seen or acquired their protected health information (PHI) after getting access to the network of one of its business associates.
Anthem partners with the insurance broker OneDigital based in Atlanta, GA, which gives assistance for people signed up in group health plans to support them in getting and taking care of their health insurance. OneDigital was provided access to the protected health information of a number of members to guide them or their existing or past employer to get and take care of their medical insurance policy.
On November 24, 2021, OneDigital alerted Anthem concerning a system server hacking incident that took place in January 2021. Anthem stated the incident investigation did not show any direct proof that there was unauthorized access or theft of PHI, however, those activities cannot be eliminated.
The types of data kept on the breached systems consisted of names, birth dates, addresses, healthcare company names, health insurance numbers, group numbers, dates and types of medical care services, medical record numbers, medication data, laboratory test data, payment details, claims data, driver’s license numbers, and Social Security numbers.
Anthem provided the impacted persons with complimentary credit monitoring and identity theft protection services for one year. Anthem mentioned it is working together with OneDigital to lessen the chance of the same breaches taking place later on.
Exposure of the PHI of Over 1,700 Advocate Aurora Health Patients Because of Billing Error
The 26-hospital health system located in Illinois, Advocate Aurora Health, has informed over 1,700 individuals concerning the possible breach of some of their PHI.
Approximately on July 29, 2021, the hospital made billing statements and sent them to patients by mail, however, they were unable to reach their destination. The documents included some PHI, for example, patients’ names, the types of services received, dates of service, the name of the medical care provider they went to, and visit account numbers.
Advocate Aurora Health became aware of the billing problem on October 29, 2021. The following investigation showed there was an unintentional alteration to its billing application that was not noticed so that the statements were sent to the incorrect address. Advocate Aurora Health stated it didn’t get any report of actual or attempted improper use of any patient information resulting from the incident, nevertheless patients were advised by mail as a preventative measure and were given free credit monitoring services.
Advocate Aurora Health explained it is changing its internal processes and technical solutions to avert identical breaches down the road. The breach report was sent to the HHS’ Office for Civil Rights as impacting 1,729 persons.
by Maria Perez | Jan 5, 2022 | Compliance News, EHR & Interoperability
At the beginning of the year, a big breach was announced by Broward Health located in Florida, which has just started informing over 1.3 million patients and workers concerning a data breach that took place on October 15, 2021. A hacker obtained access to the Broward Health system via a third-party healthcare provider’s office that was given access to the Broward Health network for delivering medical services.
Broward Health uncovered and stopped the attack on October 19, 2021, and performed a password reset for all staff members to avert more unauthorized access. With the assistance of a third-party cybersecurity firm, Broward Health carried out a thorough investigation to find out the nature and extent of the breach.
The investigation established that the attacker acquired access to sections of the system where worker and patient data were saved, which include sensitive data: names, addresses, email addresses, birth dates, telephone numbers, financial/bank account details, health insurance data, medical backgrounds, medical problems, treatment and diagnosis details, medical record numbers, Social Security numbers, and driver’s license numbers. Broward Health reported some records were exfiltrated from its networks.
The cyberattack report was sent to the Department of Justice which wanted Broward Health to put off distributing breach notification letters to affected people in order not to obstruct the law enforcement inquiry.
Broward Health took action to boost security and avert the same occurrences down the road, which comprise of using multifactor authentication for all end-users of its network and establishing minimum-security specifications for all devices not maintained by Broward Health’s IT department having network access. Those security prerequisites will be effective this January.
Broward Health did not receive any reports that show patient or staff information was misused, nevertheless as a preventative measure against identity theft and fraud, impacted persons were provided a free two-year membership to the Experian IdentityWorksSM service, consisting of identity theft protection, discovery, and resolution services.
The breach hasn’t shown up on the HHS’ Office for Civil Rights breach website although it was documented with the Maine Attorney General as likely impacting 1,357,879 individuals.
by Maria Perez | Dec 30, 2021 | Compliance News, Healthcare Industry News, HIPAA News and Advice
Since the HITECH Act (Section 13410(e) (1)) was introduced in February 2009, state attorneys general are authorized to make HIPAA-covered entities responsible for the compromise of the PHI of state locals and may submit civil actions to the federal district courts. In case of HIPAA violations, penalties may be issued as much as $25,000 for each violation category, for every calendar year. The minimum applicable penalty is $100 for every violation.
A covered entity that encountered a data breach impacting residents in several states may be required to pay HIPAA violation penalties to attorneys general in several states. Not many states have issued penalties to HIPAA-regulated entities for violating the HIPAA Regulations. They are California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Indiana, New Jersey, New York, and Vermont.
In the past years, attorneys general worked together and issued penalties for HIPAA violations to address big data breaches that have impacted individuals throughout America. They have pooled their resources together and taken a part of any resolutions or civil monetary penalties. Although just a few states have used their authority to require penalties for HIPAA violations, that doesn’t indicate HIPAA violations are not punished. Numerous states issued financial penalties for comparable violations of state regulations.
Are HIPAA Violations Criminal?
If a HIPAA-covered entity or business associate breaks HIPAA Rules, civil penalties may be enforced. If healthcare companies do not comply with the HIPAA, it is normally the employer that gets fined, however not at all times. When healthcare experts knowingly acquire or use protected health information (PHI) for purposes that aren’t allowed by the HIPAA Privacy Rule, they could be criminally accountable for the HIPAA violation based on the criminal enforcement condition of the Administrative Simplification subtitle of HIPAA.
The Department of Justice prosecutes criminal HIPAA violations, particularly those committed by individuals that have intentionally broken HIPAA Rules. There were a number of incidents that have led to large fines and jail sentences.
Criminal HIPAA violations consist of theft of patient data for monetary gain and improper disclosures with the intention to cause damage. Insufficient understanding of HIPAA rules isn’t an acceptable excuse. A person that “knowingly” breaks the HIPAA means the person knew what makes up the offense, not that there’s the absolute knowledge that he or she is breaking HIPAA Rules.
Criminal Penalties for HIPAA Violations
Criminal penalties for HIPAA violations have three distinct tiers with particular terms and an associated fine. A judge decides the penalties according to the facts of every specific case. Like with OCR, various general factors will have an effect on the penalty given. When a person made profits from the PHI access, theft, or disclosure, all money acquired may be returned, besides the payment of a penalty.
There are three tiers of criminal penalties for HIPAA violations. These are as follows:
Tier 1: Reasonable cause or without knowledge of violation – About 1 year in prison
Tier 2: Acquiring PHI under false pretenses – About 5 years in prison
Tier 3: Acquiring PHI for personal profit or with malicious intention – About 10 years in prison
In the past months, there’s been an increase in the number of workers found to be viewing or stealing PHI for different motives. The price of PHI on the black market is high, and this may be a big appeal for several people. It is consequently important that controls are set up to restrict the possibility for people to steal patient information, and to have systems and policies to make sure to identify improper PHI access and theft promptly.
All employees with access to PHI due to their work duties must be educated about the HIPAA criminal penalties and the result of violations, such as loss of job and potentially a long jail sentence and a big penalty.
State attorneys general are going after data theft and penalizing people found to have broken HIPAA Privacy Rules. A jail sentence for stealing HIPAA data is consequently very likely.
