Thieves robbed a van containing health records for over 1.7
million patients, staff, vendors and contractors of the North Bronx Healthcare
Network in New York City.
The computer backup tapes were stolen on Dec. 23, but the New York
City Health and Hospitals Corporation began notifying victims Feb. 9,
according to statement issued by the 14-hospital system on Feb. 11. While it
took HHC nearly two months before reporting the data breach, it was well within
the 60-day period required by New York state law. It took HHC this long to sort through the
files to assess what kind of information the tapes had contained and who it
belonged to, before reporting the data breach, according the hospital group.
"Letters in 17 languages have begun to be mailed to patients and
affected individuals this week advising them of the theft and informing them of
protective services that have been made available," Alan D Aviles, the
president of the HHC, said in the statement.
Patients who have visited the Jacobi Medical Center, North
Central Bronx Hospital, Tremont Health Center and Gunhill Health Center over
the past 20 years, from 1991 to Dec. 2010, are affected by this data breach. The
stolen flies also contained medical information for staff, vendors and
contractors who work for the hospitals and had either access to the QuadraMed
computer medical record system, or had been examined and screened by the
hospitals' Occupational Health Service, HHC said.
The tapes contained full name, address, Social Security
number, medical record number, health insurance information, diagnosis and
treatment data, telephone numbers, birth, admission and discharge dates, and
mother's maiden name, according to HHC's FAQ site.
Staff, vendors, and contractors may have other personal information, such as
professional licensure numbers.
For more, read the eWeek article: NYC Hospital Data Theft Affects 1.7 Million Patients.
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