Blue Cross and Blue Shield officials say a laptop computer with
a file containing identifying information for every physician in
the country who contracts with a Blue Cross-affiliated insurance
plan was stolen in August. The officials say they do not know if
the security breach led to the theft of any physician's
identity.
A letter to physicians potentially harmed by the theft from
Deborah L. Hayes, divisional vice president in the Regulatory
Oversight Office of the Health Care Service Corporation, says the
file contained physicians' names, addresses, tax identification
numbers, and National Provider Identifier numbers. Her letter says
a Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) employee in
Chicago violated security policies by transferring the date to a
personal unencrypted laptop, which was then stolen on Aug. 25.
Blue Cross is offering physicians 12 months of free credit
monitoring from
Experian
to physicians whose Social Security number is the same as their tax
identification number. BCBSA spokesperson Jeff Smokler estimated
that about 16 to 20 percent of the physicians in the national Blue
Cross database use their Social Security number as a tax
identification number. Neither he nor Blue Cross and Blue Shield of
Texas officials could say how many Texas physicians are
affected.
Eligible physicians may enroll by calling Experian at (866)
252-0121. They must enroll by Dec. 31. Call Experian if you
have questions about the free credit-monitoring program or if you
suspect or have identified fraudulent or unauthorized activity.
For additional assistance, call Blue Cross at (800) 305-3903
Monday through Friday, 8 am to 6 pm.
In another privacy-related issue, new federal regulations
require physicians covered by the Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act (HIPAA) to notify patients of any security
breaches involving their medical information.
Guidance on complying with the regulations
[
PDF
] is posted in the
TMA HIPAA Resource Center
.
Action
, Oct. 16, 2009
Last Updated On
June 16, 2010
Originally Published On
March 24, 2010