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Theft at Portland medical clinic affects more than 5,000 patients

HIM-HIPAA Insider, January 18, 2016

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A former employee of Portland, Oregon-based Northwest Primary Care (NWPC) allegedly stole the personal information of 5,372 patients. The employee accessed this information between April and December 2013, according to a statement released by NWPC. The incident went undetected for two years until law enforcement informed NWPC of the theft on October 13, 2015. NWPC notified the public on December 11, 2015. The former employee accessed patients’:
 

• Names
• Dates of birth
• Social Security numbers
• Credit card numbers

There is no evidence that the employee used or attempted to use the information, NWPC says. However, NWPC is offering affected patients identity theft protection services including identity recovery services, 12 months of credit monitoring, and a $1,000,000 insurance policy.

Reference and background checks are performed on all employees, and employees who work in highly sensitive positions, such as working with patient financial data, undergo additional background checks, NWPC says. Existing policies, procedures, and the employee code of conduct contain guidelines for accessing PHI and prohibit employees from inappropriately accessing or using PHI. NWPC is increasing its technology monitoring and employee training on accessing patient records in response to this incident. Additional technical safeguards will also be implemented to further protect PHI from theft or other criminal activity.

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