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.
EISENHOWER MEDICAL CENTER
Cited by the California Department of Public Health for a violation of California’s Health and Safety Code relating to medical privacy during an inspection that began on April 18, 2014. Also cited in 279 other reports.
Report ID: PR6811.01, California Department of Public Health
Reported Entity: EISENHOWER MEDICAL CENTER
Issue:
Based on interview and record review, the facility failed to ensure for one patient (Patient A), that his protected health information (PHI) was not disclosed to an entity not authorized to receive the information, by faxing Patient A's PHI to three different facilities. This failure resulted in unauthorized access of Patient A's PHI.Findings:An interview was conducted with the Information Privacy Officer (IPO) on April 18, 2014, at 1:20 p.m. The IPO stated on March 6, 2014, Patient A's demographic information page which included his name, date of birth, address, phone number, insurance number, medical record number, and hospital number were mistakenly faxed to three different medical facilities. The IPO stated a staff member (Staff 1) had faxed PHI for another patient (Patient B), who had a very similar name, to three other medical facilities for transfer placement. Patient A's demographic information page was inadvertently mixed in with Patient B's demographic information page and therefore faxed as well.The IPO further stated the facility was notified on March 10, 2014, of the breach that occurred by one of the three facilities who received the incorrect information, and the two other facilities were then notified of the error.The facility's policy and procedure titled "HIPAA - (Health Information Portability And Accountability Act) Use And Disclosure Of Protected Health Information," revised November 18, 2014, was reviewed. The facility's policy was "To protect the patient's rights to privacy and confidentiality, at no time will names or information be shared with any person who does not have a need to know in order to provide patient care. All personnel should refrain from discussing the patient's presence, illness, treatment, prognosis, or condition with any individual not directly associated with the care of the patient . . ."
Outcome:
Deficiency cited by the California Department of Public Health: Health & Safety Code 1280