When HHS’s breach tool reveals a breach I was not already aware of, I try to investigate or find media sources. Sometimes, despite my efforts, I can find nothing online to clarify a breach report. In some cases, I write to the organizations, who may – or may not – answer. Here are some breaches…
Category: Health Data
Missing or stolen Logan County Emergeny Ambulance Service Authority laptop contained data on over 12,000 patients
Logan County Emergeny Ambulance Service Authority in West Virginia notified HHS that a missing laptop contained protected health information on 12,563. The only coverage I can find on this was in the Logan Banner on November 18. Martha Sparks reported: Area residents who have been serviced by LEASA (Logan Emergency Ambulance Service Authority) may have their…
UK: Morecambe Bay Hospitals Trust under fire: Crudely-titled email sparks watchdog probe
Helen Perkins reports: A government watchdog has launched an investigation into an incident where midwives emailed an crudely-titled file with confidential patient details to an unknown party. The Health Service Ombudsman plans to probe staff at Furness General Hospital over a breach of data protection. Despite its confidential nature, an email by the University Hospitals…
Hershey Medical Center employee fired after breach of Joe Paterno's records
Sarah Ganim reports: A Penn State Hershey Medical Center employee has been fired for allegedly accessing Joe Paterno’s billing and registration records without permission, according to a source with direct knowledge of the breach. It happened the day after the 84-year-old was fired from his longtime Penn State head football coaching job, but two days…
UK: 'Humiliated' woman demands justice in medical records row (updated)
Kirsty Gibbins reports: A county woman left permanently disabled after an operation is battling a dental consultant she claims “humiliated and harassed” her by using her confidential medical information without consent. Lisa McIntosh, of Haddington, underwent a temporomandibular joint (TMJ) operation on her jaw in 2003, which left her blind in her right eye, with…
Miami VA Hospital employee charged with identity theft
Jay Weaver reports: An employee at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Miami has been charged with selling the personal identities of disabled patients who receive services at the hospital, authorities said Wednesday. Tarakesha Kendrick, 32, of Miami, will be arraigned Monday on charges of aggravated identity theft and unlawfully selling the personal information of…