Geisinger notifies patients of Protected Health Information incident
On June 3, 2020, Geisinger’s Privacy Office was alerted by a member of the workforce that a Geisinger Clinic employee was possibly accessing medical records without a business need to do so. An investigation was started immediately and concluded on September 8, 2020. Although the employee was permitted to access medical records as part of their daily job responsibilities, the investigation found that the employee inappropriately accessed over 700 patients’ records between June 2019 and June 2020 without a valid business need. As a result of the investigation, the individual is no longer employed at Geisinger.
Additionally, we reviewed the employee’s network activities and did not find any evidence that the employee retained or removed any of the information. While the investigation did not reveal any evidence of malicious intent, the information that may have been viewed by the employee included: name, date of birth, medical record number, dates of service, social security number, address, phone number, medical conditions, diagnoses, medications, treatment information and other clinical notes.
“At Geisinger, protecting our patients’ and members’ privacy is of the utmost importance and we are constantly working on safeguards and protocols to identify incidents such as these so we can prevent such occurrences in the future,” said Geisinger Chief Privacy Officer, Jonathan Friesen. “Our investigation leads us to believe that this information was not accessed to commit financial fraud or harm; however, out of an abundance of caution we are providing affected patients one year of identity theft protection free of charge.”
Detailed credit monitoring and identity theft protection enrollment instructions were provided to affected patients in their notification letters.
For those affected by this incident, Geisinger has established a toll-free number at 844-929-2293 which is available from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. (Eastern Standard Time) Monday through Friday.
About Geisinger
Geisinger is among the nation’s leading providers of value-based care, serving 1.2 million people in urban and rural communities across Pennsylvania. Founded in 1915 by philanthropist Abigail Geisinger, the non-profit system generates $10 billion in annual revenues across 134 care sites - including 10 hospital campuses, and Geisinger Health Plan, with 600,000 members in commercial and government plans. The Geisinger College of Health Sciences educates more than 5,000 medical professionals annually and conducts more than 1,400 clinical research studies. With 26,000 employees, including 1,600 employed physicians, Geisinger is among Pennsylvania’s largest employers with an estimated economic impact of $14 billion to the state’s economy. On March 31, 2024, Geisinger became the first member of Risant Health, a new nonprofit charitable organization created to expand and accelerate value-based care across the country. Learn more at geisinger.org or connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X.
