Massachusetts

2 Million Impacted by Data Breach at Massachusetts Health Care Organization

The incident may have impacted 56 health care facilities and their patients

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Quincy, Massachusetts-based Shields Health Care says it is investigating a data security breach that may have impacted 56 health care facilities and their patients.

Shields, which provides management and imaging services for health care facilities, said in a statement posted on its website that it "became aware of suspicious activity" on its network on March 28 and launched an investigation to determine the full scope of the incident.

With help from third-party forensic specialists, the company said it took "immediate steps" to contain the incident and find out how it happened. An investigation determined that someone gained access to some Shields systems and acquired data from March 7 to March 21.

So far, Shields said it hasn't found any evidence indicating that any information from the incident was used to commit identity theft or fraud. The information could include names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, home addresses, provider information, diagnosis, billing information, insurance information, medical record numbers, patient IDs and other medical treatment information.

The health care company said its review of the impacted data is still ongoing. Once it has completed its review, Shields said it will be directly contacting impacted individuals so they can take steps to protect their information if they wish to do so.

The breach has been reported to federal law enforcement and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights. That agency reported on its website that 2 million people were affected. An FBI spokesperson said the agency had no comment.

Shields has about 40 locations, mostly in Massachusetts but also in New Hampshire and Maine.

Shields also included a list of dozens of facility partners that may have been affected, including Tufts Medical Center, Central Maine Medical Center and UMass Memorial.

A full list of Shields partner facilities can be found below:

Baystate Health Urgent Care, LLC
Baystate MRI & Imaging Center, LLC
Brighton Imaging Center, LLC
Cape Cod CT Services, LLC
Cape Cod Imaging Services, LLC (a business associate to Falmouth Hospital Association, Inc)
Cape Cod PET/CT Services, LLC
Cape Cod Radiation Therapy Service, LLC
Central Maine Medical Center
Emerson Hospital
Fall River/New Bedford Regional MRI Limited Partnership
Falmouth Hospital Association, Inc.
Franklin MRI Center, LLC
Lahey Clinic MRI Services, LLC
Massachusetts Bay MRI Limited Partnership
Mercy Imaging, Inc.
MRI/CT of Providence, LLC
Newton-Wellesley MRI Limited Partnership
NW Imaging Management Company, LLC (a business associate to Newton Wellesley Orthopedic Associates, Inc.)
Newton-Wellesley Imaging, PC
Newton Wellesley Orthopedic Associates, Inc.
Northern MASS MRI Services, Inc.
PET-CT Services by Tufts Medical Center and Shields, LLC
Shields and Sports Medicine Atlantic Imaging Management Co, LLC (a business associate SportsMedicine Atlantic Orthopaedics P.A.)
Shields CT of Brockton, LLC
Shields Imaging at Anna Jaques Hospital, LLC
Shields Healthcare of Cambridge, Inc.
Shields Imaging at University Hospital, LLC
Shields Imaging at York Hospital, LLC
Shields Imaging Management at Emerson Hospital, LLC (a business associate to Emerson Hospital)
Shields Imaging of Eastern Mass, LLC
Shields Imaging of Lowell General Hospital, LLC
Shields Imaging of Portsmouth, LLC
Shields Imaging with Central Maine Health, LLC (a business associate to Central Maine Medical Center)
Shields Management Company, Inc.
Shields MRI & Imaging Center of Cape Cod, LLC
Shields MRI of Framingham, LLC
Shields PET/CT at CMMC, LLC
Shields PET_CT at Berkshire Medical Center, LLC
Shields PET-CT at Cooley Dickinson Hospital, LLC
Shields PET-CT at Emerson Hospital, LLC
Shields Radiology Associates, PC
Shields Signature Imaging, LLC
Shields Sturdy PET-CT, LLC
Shields-Tufts Medical Center Imaging Management, LLC (a business associate to Tufts Medical Center, Inc.)
South Shore Regional MRI Limited Partnership
Southeastern Massachusetts Regional MRI Limited Partnership
SportsMedicine Atlantic Orthopaedics P.A.
Tufts Medical Center, Inc.
UMass Memorial HealthAlliance MRI Center, LLC
UMass Memorial MRI – Marlborough, LLC
UMass Memorial MRI & Imaging Center, LLC
Winchester Hospital / Shields MRI, LLC
Radiation Therapy of Southeastern Massachusetts, LLC
Radiation Therapy of Winchester, LLC
South Suburban Oncology Center Limited Partnership
Shields Imaging of North Shore, LLC

Anyone with additional questions can call 855-503-3386. More information on what steps people can take to protect their information can be found here.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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