Review your statements: Massachusetts healthcare provider warns patients of data breach

BOSTON — A Massachusetts healthcare provider is warning patients of a recently discovered data breach that compromised some personal information.

Brigham and Women’s Physician Organization, a Mass General Brigham Incorporated member, is notifying individuals of an incident it became aware of on Jan. 29, 2024, involving some patients’ personal information.

In a statement, BWPO said, “Harvard Pilgrim informed BWPO that they discovered a file from 2019 on a Harvard Pilgrim server that contained a limited amount of BWPO patient data. An employee of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, who was also a part-time employee of BWPO, backed up the contents of their laptop in 2019 to Harvard Pilgrim’s systems. Unfortunately, Harvard Pilgrim determined that this 2019 file had been accessed by an unauthorized third party in connection with a cybersecurity ransomware incident at Harvard Pilgrim.”

Personal information disclosed may have included patients’ names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, medical record numbers, health insurance numbers, and limited clinical information including lab results, procedures, medications, and diagnoses related to care provided at BWPO, according to the healthcare provider.

This incident did not involve Social Security Numbers, financial account numbers, or debit/credit card numbers.

“Although the incident did not occur on BWPO systems, BWPO is fully committed to protecting the privacy and security of personal information. BWPO is notifying affected individuals and encourages affected individuals to review their statements to ensure account activity is valid. BWPO has taken appropriate steps to address this matter and prevent something like this from happening in the future,” the healthcare provider added.

Patients with any questions or would like further information about this matter can call 833-294-2020 or contact BWPO by email at bwhcHIPAA@partners.org.

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