On August 7, 2017, the covered entity (CE), Arkansas Department of Human Services discovered that a former workforce member sent encrypted emails containing the protected health information (PHI) of 29,023 individuals to her personal email account. The emails contained spreadsheets that included demographic, treatment, and claims information. The CE provided breach notification to HHS, affected individuals, and the media and posted substitute notice on its website. In response to the incident, the CE sanctioned the involved workforce member, implemented additional administrative and technical safeguards, and re-trained workforce members. OCR obtained assurances that the CE implemented the corrective actions listed above.
