Search Privacy Violations, Breaches and Complaints
This database was last updated in December 2015 ago and should only be used as a historical snapshot. More recent data on breaches affecting 500 or more people is available at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Breach Portal.
VA Healthcare - VISN 4 (VISN 4)
Mentioned in a privacy incident report created by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs on November 16, 2011. Also cited in 239 other reports.
Report ID: SPE000000068702, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Reported Entity: VISN 04 Lebanon, PA
Issue:
Veteran A was seen in the outpatient clinic. When he checked out of the clinic he was given medical record data on Veteran B. He stopped at the beneficiary travel window and realized he had medical record information on Veteran B. He informed the travel clerk that he did not look at the information since he thought it was VA literature and brochures on upcoming VA Lebanon, PA events. The travel clerk obtained the medical information and contacted the Privacy Officer (PO). On 11/15/11, the PO tried contacting Veteran A to see if he remembered the VA employee who gave him the information. The PO was unable to reach Veteran A. After speaking to staff members in the outpatient clinic where Veteran A had a clinical appointment, VA staff do not remember giving any paperwork to Veteran A. The information contained Veteran B's name, full SSN and protected health information (PHI) Update: 11/16/11:Veteran B will be sent a letter offering credit protection services.
Outcome:
Fact finding was performed and we were unable to find how Veteran A obtained Veteran B's medical information. However, we performed training with allnecessary staff in the outpatient clinic to remind staff on the handling of personable identifiable information.