Kaiser Permanente Northern California said that two former employees recently stole ultrasound units that contained electronic protected health information of as many as 1,100 patients.
Although a "significant portion" of the stolen systems have since been returned to Kaiser, the remaining units have not yet been found, according to a Kaiser statement. A Kaiser investigation in June found that some of the recovered systems had patient information ranging from only name and/or date to full name, medical record number, and images. No Social Security numbers or other financial information were on the systems, according to Kaiser.
Furthermore, there's been no evidence so far that the patient information has been inappropriately accessed, Kaiser said. In addition, it believes the risk of fraud is quite low since Social Security numbers were not stored on the systems.
"We firmly believe that the theft of this equipment was for the sole purpose of selling it for profit, and not for the purpose of disclosing or misuse of [protected health information]," Kaiser said. "Prior to their return to Kaiser Permanente, the recovered stolen units were being housed in a locked storage unit. We have reported the theft to law enforcement."
Kaiser said that it's in the process of notifying its affected members -- approximately 1,100 individuals in Northern California -- and apologizes for any inconvenience or concern caused by the thefts. In addition, Kaiser said it's continuing to investigate the incident and is taking appropriate actions to prevent similar errors in the future.
