WI, GA, LA Hospitals Confirm Recent Healthcare Cyberattacks
Jack Hughston Memorial Hospital, Baton Rouge General, and Southwest Health Center all reported recent healthcare cyberattacks.
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By Jill McKeon
- Baton Rouge General, Jack Hughston Memorial Hospital, and Southwest Health Center all recently reported separate healthcare cyberattacks. Reports of healthcare cyberattacks continue to roll in as threat actors advance their tactics and narrow in on the sector.
Baton Rouge General Reverts to Paper Records During Cyberattack
According to local news outlet WAFB, Baton Rouge General, a member of the Mayo Clinic care network, suffered a cyberattack beginning on June 28.
In a statement provided to the outlet, Baton Rouge General assured that “the attack has not changed our ability to care for our patients.”
On June 29, the Louisiana hospital said it would temporarily revert to recording patient records on paper until it could safely bring its EMR and other patient systems back online.
At the time of publication, it is unclear how many patients were impacted by the cyberattack or whether protected health information (PHI) was compromised.
Jack Hughston Memorial Hospital Confirms Cyberattack
Georgia-based Jack Hughston Memorial Hospital confirmed a recent cyberattack in a statement to local news outlet WRBL. Hospital CEO Mark Baker told the news outlet that it immediately launched an investigation into the incident with the help of outside cybersecurity professionals.
“Upon learning of the issue, we took immediate steps to protect our environment, including disconnecting certain functionality to protect against any further harm,” Baker said.
Jack Hughson Memorial said that there was currently no evidence that any data was compromised, but it is still in the early stages of its investigation.
“We appreciate the community’s understanding and partnership as we work through this issue. We are taking this matter very seriously and continue to take significant measures to protect the personal information entrusted to us,” the statement continued.
“We are committed to maintaining the privacy of personal information in our possession and have taken many precautions to secure it. While cybersecurity threats continue to impact all of us, we are taking ever-increasing measures to protect the information entrusted to us.”
Southwest Health Center Notifies Employees, Patients of Data Security Incident
An unauthorized actor potentially accessed or acquired certain personal information after executing a cyberattack against Southwest Health, the Wisconsin hospital said in a press release. The information involved belonged to certain current and former employees and their listed dependents or beneficiaries, along with individuals who sought care at Southwest Health.
Southwest Health discovered the incident on January 11 and later determined that an unauthorized actor potentially viewed or acquired names, birth dates, driver’s license numbers, Social Security numbers, medical information, health insurance information, and financial account information.
Southwest Health notified impacted individuals of the incident on July 5 and offered free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services.
“The privacy and protection of personal and protected health information is our top priority. We deeply regret any inconvenience or concern this incident caused,” the statement concluded.
