Premier Healthcare reported a laptop containing protected health information had been stolen in January, potentially affecting 206,000 patients of the Bloomington, Ind., practice. In a rare positive turn of events, the laptop has been recovered.
A forensic investigation by security firm Pondurance found the laptop had not been powered on since it went missing, and further analysis found no evidence that information on the computer was ever accessed, according to a Premier Healthcare statement.
Premier Healthcare still had to notify patients of the theft, which cost money and negatively affected its reputation. Offering identity protection services also is a costly breach response action.
Editor
Editor Beth earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and master’s in health communication. She has worked in hospital, academic and publishing settings over the past 20 years. Beth joined TriMed in 2005, as editor of CMIO and Clinical Innovation + Technology. When not covering all things related to health IT, she spends time with her husband and three children.