The libertarian-leaning Citizen’s Council for Health Freedom is reporting on a massive patient data hack at a clinic in Michigan. The doctors refused to pay the ransom demanded by hackers that attacked the clinic’s EHR with ransomware. The hackers then wiped the entire system, deleting all patient data. This blow caused the two doctors running the clinic to retire early:
“Rather than rebuild their practice from scratch, the doctors retired early, leaving their patients to find care, and scheduled surgery elsewhere,” said CCHF president and co-founder Twila Brase. “When Congress mandated that doctors use electronic health records, it opened the door to hacking. This is just one of the many dangers electronic health records (EHRs) pose to patients, and nearly everyone’s private medical information has been entered into an EHR sometime in the course of their care, and therefore, is at risk.”
Other practices have been attacked causing huge losses of revenue, even though they paid the demanded ransom to the hackers.
Be cognizant of the security of your systems.