Over 6,000 Patients Informed of Security Incident
On Feb. 8, Advent Health Partners, one of Houston, Texas-Based Memorial Hermann Health System’s contracted vendors, issued a noticed saying it has experienced a security breach.
An article from KHOU 11 by Briahn Hawkins reports that “According to the health system, the protected health information (PHI) for 6,260 patients have been breached.”
According to the notice on Advent Health Partners’ website, in early September of 2021 the company detected “suspicious activity involving data provided to Advent Health Partners.” The company states that they immediately began an investigation, which is still ongoing, but on Dec. 2, 2021, it discovered that files containing information of patients were accessed by an unauthorized third party. Advent Health Partners began notifying individuals of this incident on Jan. 6, 2022.
Hawkins writes that “An unauthorized third party accessed multiple files including the following types of PHI: first names, last names, dates of birth, social security numbers, driver’s licenses numbers, financial information, health insurance information and treatment information.”
Further, “According to Memorial Hermann, there is no sign of anyone's information being used as a result of this cyberattack.”
Hawkins adds that those who may have been affected by the breach should get a letter from Advent Health Partners in the next week.
Advent Health Partners suggests that those affected by the breach monitor their credit reports and account statements. The company is also offering free credit monitoring to those who receive notification.
