The covered entity (CE), Minnesota Department of Human Services, reported that an employee inadvertently emailed billing statements that contained the protected health information (PHI) of 4,307 individuals to an unauthorized individual. The PHI involved included names, addresses, and claims and financial information. The CE notified HHS, affected individuals, the media, and posted substitute notice on its website. In response to the breach, the CE implemented additional administrative, technical, and security safeguards, and retrained workforce members to better protect its PHI. OCR provided technical assistance to the CE regarding the HIPAA Security Rule.
