Statement issued by Lexington Clinic:
January 30, 2012
Lexington Clinic is notifying 1,018 patients of a privacy breach. Despite stringent security protocols, a laptop was stolen from Lexington Clinic’s Neurology Department located in the St. Joseph Office Park at 1401 Harrodsburg Road. The theft occurred overnight on December 7, 2011. Following an internal investigation of the incident, Lexington Clinic determined that the laptop contained patient names, contact information and diagnoses for certain Lexington Clinic patients receiving services within the neurology department. The stolen laptop did not contain the personal financial information of Lexington Clinic patients, such as Social Security Numbers, credit card numbers and bank account numbers.
Lexington Clinic immediately notified law enforcement authorities once it learned of the theft, and all door locks to the neurology department were changed. Lexington Clinic is actively working with the St. Joseph security officials to further assess security of offices located in the St. Joseph Office Park.
Lexington Clinic is notifying, by letter, all patients who may be affected by this theft. If you have been or currently are a patient of the Lexington Clinic Neurology Department, and you did not receive a letter regarding this incident, your information was not included on the stolen laptop. There is no evidence thus far that any patient information has been misused, however, Lexington Clinic advises patients to follow the steps recommended by the Federal Trade Commission to prevent misuse of personal information:
Stay alert for signs of identity theft, such as:
- Accounts you didn’t open and debts on your accounts that you can’t explain.
- Fraudulent or inaccurate information on your credit reports, including accounts and personal information, such as your Social Security number, address(es), name or initials and employers.
- Failing to receive bills or other mail. Follow up with creditors if your bills don’t arrive on time.
- Receiving credit cards that you didn’t apply for.
- Being denied credit, or being offered less favorable credit terms, like a high interest rate, for no apparent reason.
- Getting calls or letters from debt collectors or businesses about merchandise or services you didn’t buy.
Order your free annual credit report:
- Visit www.annualcreditreport.com, or;
- Call toll-free 1-877-322-8228 or;
- Complete the annual Credit Report Request Form and mail it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta GA 30348-5281. You can print the form from www.ftc.govcredit.
Lexington Clinic is following all requirements of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act by notifying patients of the breach, publicly disclosing the breach to the local media, and posting information about the breach on their website.
For additional information Lexington Clinic patients are encouraged to call toll-free at 1-877-851-2562. Local residents may call 859-258-5888. Media inquires should be directed to the Lexington Clinic Business Development Department at (859) 258-6323. Lexington Clinic will also respond to questions by email at: privacy@lexclin.com.Lexington Clinic is Central Kentucky’s oldest and largest group practice, with more than 200 providers offering primary and specialty care services. Founded in 1920, Lexington Clinic offers more than 30 specialties and operates offices in more than 25 locations throughout Central and Eastern Kentucky. For more information about Lexington Clinic, visit LexingtonClinic.com. To follow Lexington Clinic on Facebook, visit www.facebook.com/LexingtonClinicky.