Change Healthcare posts HIPAA notice regarding data breach
As Change Healthcare continues reviewing data impacted by a February cyberattack to identify potential victims, it has published a substitute notice on its website in accordance with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act requirements.
After the data review process concludes later this month, the company also plans to mail letters to affected individuals for whom sufficient address information is available.
When only insufficient contact information exists for individuals whose protected health data has been compromised in a breach, HIPAA states a covered entity may post about the breach on its website as a substitute form of notice that should reasonably reach the individuals.
Change Healthcare has also provided a link to the substitute notice more generally so that health care providers can share the information with their patients even if they have not been identified as impacted.
While the company cannot confirm the exact information that was compromised for each person, impacted data may have included: contact information, such as names, addresses and dates of birth; health insurance information, such as health plans and member or group ID numbers; health information, such as providers, diagnoses and test results; billing, claims and payment information, such as billing codes and financial and banking information; and other personal information, such as Social Security numbers.
Change Healthcare suggests that patients take the necessary steps to protect their privacy — including enrolling in complimentary credit monitoring and identity theft protection services, examining their explanation of benefits statements and other financial statements to check for suspicious activity, and reporting any unfamiliar activity to health care providers, financial institutions or local law enforcement authorities.
Read more: Change Healthcare
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