TRICARE in Trouble Again- More Lawsuits to Face
The number of data breaches in the healthcare industry seems to be steadily rising. Two more incidents have now been added to the long list of breaches. According to Sacremento TV station KCRA, the state of California posted the Social Security Numbers of nearly 14,000 Medical providers working for the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS), by mistake.
The Social Security Numbers remained posted for nine days before the mistake was discovered and the numbers were removed. Shockingly, this is the second breach involving IHSS workers this year. The California Department of Social Services notified over 70,000 workers in May that their personal information may be vulnerable to theft following the loss of a mail package that contained payroll data.
In another such incident in New Mexico, a TV station KOB, reported that a laptop belonging to the state’s largest independent doctor’s group ABQ Health Partners went missing. This laptop is said to contain names, dates of birth, health plan ID numbers and diagnosis information of 238 patients. However, the organization said that there were no Social Security Numbers, addresses or access to patient records.
These incidents underline the fact that data security is an ongoing challenge. As reported by Ponemon Institute, data breaches cost $ 7 billion a year to the healthcare industry. This situation calls for a review of priorities and adoption of comprehensive data security measures. Solutions like SecureGRCcan come a long way in achieving this objective. It can provide the ideal platform for organizations to secure sensitive information and prevent data breaches of any nature.
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