South Shore Physicians

The protected health information (PHI) of approximately 8000 individuals was purposely taken by an employee for identity theft purposes. The employee took copies of patients’ names, dates of birth, mailing addresses, social security numbers, bank account numbers, credit card numbers and medical information. The covered entity (CE) had to wait in order to report the breach to OCR due to the criminal investigation by the New York City police and district attorney’s office. The CE hired a consultant to conduct an investigation, risk analysis, risk management plan. Additionally, the CE’s consultant reviewed its Privacy and Security Rule policies and procedures and retrained staff. Lastly, the CE notified the patients regarding this incident as required by the Breach Notification Rule. OCR obtained assurances that the CE implemented the corrective actions listed above.