On April 11, 2022, AHI filed a formal breach notice with the federal government and began sending data breach letters to those whose information was compromised in the incident. You are not alone if you have received a data breach email from Adaptive Health Integrations.
However, it would help if you didn’t let the fact that over half a million people were affected by the hack stop you from giving the situation the attention it deserves. While the company has not yet made public the specific information that was compromised, you must become aware of the risks of a data breach and take appropriate steps to reduce the chance of fraud or identity theft.
Additional Information Regarding the Adaptive Health Integrations Breach
To learn more about the steps you can take to protect yourself from fraud or identity theft and what legal options you have after an IDC Research data breach, see our recent blog post on the subject here. Given the recent AHI violation, few details about the incident have been provided.
However, according to a white paper from the company, Adaptive Health Integrations recently learned that an unauthorized party was able to gain access to the company’s computer system around October 17, 2021. Upon learning of the incident, AHI initiated a breach investigation to learn more about its cause and whether consumer information was compromised. On February 23, 2022, AHI confirmed that sensitive information belonging to between 510 and 574 people had been compromised. Around April 11, 2022, Adaptive Health Integrations began sending data breach notification emails to all affected parties.
Adaptive Health Integrations, headquartered in Williston, North Dakota, provides various billing and software support services for laboratories, healthcare companies, and providers. Adaptive Health Integrations is a subsidiary of MedScan Laboratory, Inc. Medscan Laboratory operates three laboratories in Williston, North Dakota, Atlanta, Georgia and Houston, Texas. The Medical laboratory employs 164 people and has an annual income of about $30 million.
What to Do After a Data Breach Involving Protected Health Information
While Adaptive Health Integrations did not provide details on the type of information leaked due to the recent breach, given the company’s scope of business, the breach may have disclosed consumer-protected health information. Data breaches related to protected health information have raised concerns beyond Social Security numbers and financial account information.
In fact, credit reporting agency Experian reports that the average cost of fixing a health data breach is around $13,500.
First, a medical data breach threat is that someone will use your information to obtain medical care on your behalf. This may include receiving medical bills for procedures you never performed, but more importantly, your medical records may contain incorrect information from criminals who steal your identity. Those whose protected health information must be compromised in a data breach take steps to protect themselves.
Gather Documentation and Report the Incident
After a medical data breach, the first thing to do is collect all documentation related to the theft of protected medical information. This includes a company letter about the data breach and any fraudulent medical bills. You must also notify the Federal Trade Commission by filing an identity theft report.
Review Your Current Medical Records
This next step is perhaps the most burdensome but also the most important. You will need to collect all of your medical records and review them for accuracy. Watch out for any unknown treatments.
Request Providers Correct All Errors
You should also check that the addresses and phone numbers on the file are correct. If you notice that something is wrong with your medical record, you should ask the provider to correct the mistake. The last thing you want is your medical record to contain incorrect information, such as a missing drug allergy.