Erie Family Health Center, Inc. d/b/a Erie Family Health Centers

The breach at Erie Family Health Center, Inc., doing business as Erie Family Health Centers in Illinois, occurred on October 1, 2023. Following the discovery of the breach, Erie Family Health Centers took immediate steps to ensure that the threat actor could no longer access the compromised employee’s email account[1]. This incident is part of a broader context in which healthcare organizations are increasingly targeted by cyber threats, leading to unauthorized access or disclosure of protected health information (PHI).

Erie Family Health Centers is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing high-quality, affordable healthcare. It emphasizes the importance of privacy and security in handling patient information, offering a range of medical, dental, and behavioral healthcare services to all individuals, regardless of their ability to pay[5]. The organization has a comprehensive privacy policy and practices in place, aiming to protect the health information of its patients[2]. In the event of a privacy rights violation, Erie Family Health Centers encourages individuals to file a complaint with their Privacy Officer or with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services[2].

The breach at Erie Family Health Centers underscores the ongoing challenges healthcare providers face in safeguarding patient information against cyber threats. It also highlights the importance of prompt and effective response measures to mitigate the impact of such incidents on patient privacy and trust.

Citations:

1. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/privacy23/
2. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/recordsrequest/
3. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/specialevents/
4. https://ocrportal.hhs.gov/ocr/breach/breach_report.jsf
5. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org
6. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/research/
7. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/waystohelp/
8. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/support/
9. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/our-history/
10. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/contact/
11. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/advancingpractice/
12. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/welcome/
13. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/about-us/
14. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/myerie/
15. https://www.hipaajournal.com/hipaa-violation-cases/
16. https://ocrportal.hhs.gov/ocr/breach/breach_report.jsf?ref=blog.gitguardian.com
17. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/locations/
18. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/foundation/
19. https://www.eriefamilyhealth.org/ourpeople/