Benefitfocus.com

The covered entity (CE), Benefitfocus.com, Inc., reported that a mail merge error caused letters with protected health information (PHI) to be sent to the wrong addresses. The PHI involved included names and insurance eligibility information. As a result, 827 individuals were affected. The CE sanctioned the employee responsible for the breach and implemented additional training to all staff members. In addition, the CE is in the process of automating the mailing process to mitigate human error. OCR provided the CE with technical assistance regarding the Breach Notification Rule and provided additional HIPAA training. BenefitFocus.com provided breach notification to HHS, affected individuals, and the media. OCR obtained assurances that the CE met its notification requirements and implemented the corrective actions noted above.