On November 1, the Dallas County Mental Health Mental Retardation Center (doing business as Metrocare Services) notified HHS of a breach affecting 1,804. The following is their published notifcation, provided to this site by their spokesperson.
DALLAS, TX – Metrocare Services announced today that it is mailing notification letters to some of its community members regarding an incident that may have impacted some information of individuals who received services connected to Metrocare.
On September 4, 2018, Metrocare learned an unauthorized third party gained access into some Metrocare employees’ email accounts beginning on August 2, 2018. Metrocare immediately took steps to secure the accounts and began an investigation. The investigation determined the unauthorized access occurred and could not rule out whether emails containing individuals’ information were accessed by the third party. Metrocare determined some individuals’ information was included in the affected email accounts, and may have included individuals’ names, dates of birth, health insurance information, driver’s license information, health information related to services received connected to Metrocare, and, in some cases, Social Security numbers.
Metrocare began mailing letters to affected individuals on November 1, 2018 and is offering complimentary identity protection and credit monitoring services to those individuals whose Social Security numbers were contained in the email accounts. Additionally, Metrocare established a dedicated call center that is available Monday through Friday, from 8am to 5pm Central Time to answer questions members of its community may have about the incident. Please contact the call center at 1-833-228-5722 (toll-free) if you do not receive a letter by November 25, 2018 and have reason to believe you may be affected by this matter.
Metrocare recommends its individuals review all health care related statements they receive. Individuals should promptly contact their health care provider if they see services they did not receive or authorize. To help prevent something like this from happening in the future, Metrocare is taking steps to add additional security measures to its current information technology infrastructure, including strengthening its email system, and providing additional information security training to its employees.
About Metrocare Services
Metrocare is the largest provider of mental health services in North Texas, serving more than 57,000 adults and children annually. For over 50 years, Metrocare has provided a broad array of services to people with mental health challenges and developmental disabilities. In addition to behavioral health care, Metrocare provides primary care centers for adults and children, services for veterans and their families, accessible pharmacies, housing and supportive social services. Alongside the clinical care, researchers and teachers from Metrocare’s Altshuler Center for Education & Research are advancing mental health beyond Dallas County while providing critical workforce to the state. For more information, visit metrocareservices.org or call 214-743-1200. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.