Patient medical records are harder to keep safe when they’re stored on mobile devices like iPads and smartphones, but it’s not because of an innate vulnerability in mobile platforms – it’s because they’re easier to steal.
More than 116 cases of data breaches that exposed at least 500 patient records resulting from loss or theft were reported in less than two years, according to a Dept. of Health & Human report spanning Sept. 22, 2009, to May 8, 2011.
More than 1.9 million patient records were collectively exposed through those incidents, EMR Daily News reported.
Health Benefit Consultants, Share Your Expert Insights in Our Survey
MassDevice Staff Website The Massachusetts Medical Devices Journal is the online journal of the medical devices industry in the Commonwealth and New England, providing day-to-day coverage of the devices that save lives, the people behind them, and the burgeoning trends and developments within the industry.
The news validates the mantra that software hackers aren’t the real threat when it comes to digital patient records. Physical theft and loss account for more than 60 percent of all security breaches involving medical records in HHS investigations (only incidents that expose 500 records or more were reported).
Hacking, like the recent software virus that exposed more than 2,000 patient records at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, made up 6 percent of reported incidents.
“HIPPA violations aren’t happening in the cloud. Rather, they’re happening in the doctor’s office, hospital IT closets, cars, subways, and homes,” Software Advice wrote.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
The Massachusetts Medical Devices Journal is the online journal of the medical devices industry in the Commonwealth and New England, providing day-to-day coverage of the devices that save lives, the people behind them, and the burgeoning trends and developments within the industry.
