HITECH Act Compliance Alert:
Historic Breach of PHI Lawsuit!
If you think the HITECH Act isn't a game changer, think again.
The State Attorney General of Connecticut filed a historic lawsuit for breach of protected health information for an estimated 446,000 past and present Connecticut enrollees of Health Net of Connecticut.
The case marks the first action by a state attorney general involving HIPAA violations since HITECH went into effect, authorizing State Attorney Generals to enforce HIPAA.
According to the lawsuit, on or about May 14, 2009, Health Net officials learned that a portable computer disk drive disappeared from the company's Shelton office. The disk drive contained PHI and identity information for approximately 446,000 past and present Connecticut enrollees.
Blumenthal alleges that Health Net failed to promptly notify his office or other Connecticut authorities of the missing information.
According to a report filed by Kroll, Inc., a computer forensic consulting firm hired by Health Net, the data was not encrypted or otherwise protected from access and viewing by unauthorized persons or third parties, and was viewable through the use of commonly available software.
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