Editor's Note Personal patient data could have been compromised in the May 8 cyberattack on Ascension, according to the latest update from the St. Louis-based healthcare system. Posted June 12, the update reveals that attackers accessed files from seven out of 25,000 file servers used for routine tasks, potentially containing…

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Editor's Note Microsoft and Google announced they will offer free or discounted cybersecurity services to rural hospitals in the U.S. to help protect against cyberattacks, CNN reported on June 10. According to the article, Microsoft will provide free security updates, assessments, and staff training, while Google will offer free cybersecurity…

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Editor's Note Ascension, a 140-hospital, St. Louis-based health system disrupted by a May 8 cyberattack, has announced that its electronic medical record (EHR) will be restored by June 14. Becker’s Health IT reported the news June 5. According to that article, the restoration of systems comes after medical records have…

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Editor's Note Doctors are urging the American Medical Association (AMA) to take legal action or otherwise help recoup their losses from the February 21 Cyberattack on Change Healthcare, a division of United HealthGroup. Forbes reported the news June 3. The article cites a a resolution before the AMA’s reference committee on amendments…

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Editor's Note Change Healthcare is responsible for notifying affected parties about privacy breaches resulting from the February cyberattack on the company, The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced May 31. The announcement took the form of an update to an FAQ webpage from HHS’ Office for Civil…

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Editor's Note A joint letter from the American Medical Association (AMA) and more than 100 medical organizations asks Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra to confirm that providers do not bear responsibility for legal reporting requirements for information stolen in the Change Healthcare cyberattack, including personal patient data.…

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Editor's Note A $50 million initiative to develop cybersecurity tools for hospitals aims to protect providers and patients alike from ransomware, according to a May 20 report in Becker’s Health IT. The Universal PatchinG and Remediation for Autonomous DEfense, or UPGRADE, program was launched the same day by the Advanced Research…

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Editor's Note Black Basta, reportedly the second most prolific ransomware group in the world, has healthcare organizations firmly in its crosshairs, according to a May 13 article in the Hippa Journal. Citing a May 10 bulletin on the group from Health Information Sharing and Analysis Center Healht-ISAC, the article notes…

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Editor's Note Hospital head counts and budgets reflect a growing emphasis on cybersecurity, according to a recent Moody’s Investment Service report. As detailed in an April 25 report in Becker’s Health IT, the Moody’s report is based on data from 148 healthcare organizations, 77% of which are hospitals. Cybersecurity team…

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Editor's Note A recent data breach at Kaiser Permanente could impact as many as 13.4 million people who are part of the healthcare conglomerate’s Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, according to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Fox Business reported the news April 29. The breach was first reported…

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