Decatur County General Hospital

Decatur County General Hospital, the covered entity (CE), reported that unauthorized software was installed on its server used to store and access patient data. This breach affected 50,496 individuals and the types of PHI involved included names, dates of birth, addresses, Social Security numbers, drivers’ license numbers, diagnoses/conditions, lab results, medications, and other treatment information. The CE provided breach notification to affected individuals, the media, and HHS. The CE also offered free credit monitoring and fraud alert services. In addition, the CE conducted an internal investigation with assistance from its electronic medical record vendor and a forensic security firm, replaced the affected server, and implemented additional security and technical safeguards. OCR obtained assurances that the CE implemented the corrective actions noted above.