Becker's ASC Review reported on four ASCs or ASC operators affected by data breaches this year.
They are:
1. Columbia Surgical Specialists of Spokane (Wash.) reported a ransomware attack affecting 400,000 patients to the HHS Office for Civil Rights breach portal Feb. 18. It sent a letter to patients informing them of the attack and disclosing that the practice had paid the attackers $14,649.09 to unlock encrypted files. The practice said the ransom was paid by the practice's physicians and the cost will not be passed on to patients.
2. Quantum Vision Centers and Eye Surgery Center, based in the village of Swansea in Downstate Illinois, was hit with a malware attack April 18. The malware encrypted some files, including those on a server containing patient health information, the company said. The data affected may have included patients' Social Security numbers, names, addresses and health insurance coverage.
3. Pensacola, Fla.-based Clearway Pain Solutions Institute, which operates clinics and an ASC, was affected by an EMR data breach that exposed 35,000 records in April.
4. Gillette, Wyo.-based Campbell County Health, parent of Powder River Surgery Center, is warning patients about a possible scam in the wake of a ransomware attack that affected all 1,500 computers in its system in September.
