University of Vermont Health Network - Elizabethtown Community Hospital

The covered entity (CE), University of Vermont Health Network – Elizabethtown Community Hospital, reported that several employees were the victims of an email phishing scheme that affected the electronic protected health information (ePHI) of 32,470 individuals. The ePHI involved included names, addresses, dates of birth, drivers’ license numbers, Social Security numbers, claims and financial information, diagnoses/conditions, medications prescribed, and other treatment information. The CE notified HHS, affected individuals, the media, and provided substitute notice. Following the breach, the CE implemented additional administrative, technical, and security safeguards to better protect its ePHI. In addition, the CE retrained its workforce members on the proper methods of identifying and responding to fraudulent email communications.