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Employees steal patient information to file false tax returns

Compliance Monitor, April 25, 2012

Two employees from hospitals in Broward County, Fla., stole the identities of nearly 9,500 patients in order to file false tax returns, according to a report in the SunSentinel.

The employees stole patient information starting in 2011 until the hospital staff discovered the breach in January 2012. The hospital fired the employees, who now face federal investigation.

The employees accessed files containing patients’ information, even though they did not need that access as part of their job responsibilities. Memorial Healthcare System, the parent of five Memorial hospitals, sent letters to patients whose information may have been accessed, and are offering a year of free credit monitoring in case patients encounter problems.

Read this post and more on HCPro’s HIPAA Update blog.

 

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