Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Advised 15,000 Clients Regarding Data Breach

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Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan informed about 15,000 clients that some of their personal information kept on a laptop was compromised as the laptop computer was stolen from a personnel of a business associate of a subsidiary.

The laptop was compromised on October 26, 2018. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan became aware about the breach of protected health information (PHI) of plan members on November 12, 2018. The breach impacted Blue Cross’ Medicare Advantage health insurance plans members. Announcements presently being sent via mail to all plan members impacted by the data breach.

The laptop computer has security measures including password protection and encryption of plan members’ information saved on the gadget; nevertheless, the personnel’s credentials could also have been compromised. Therefore, there is a possibility that PHI may have been viewed.

The information saved on the stolen laptop computer only involved names, birth dates, sex, addresses, members’ ID numbers, insurance provider data, diagnoses, and prescription drugs. The laptop computer didn’t have Social Security numbers or fiscal records.

Computer specialists are looking into the incident. The login details of the staff have now been modified. The threat of identity theft and fraud is considered to be minimal; even so, as a safety measure, all persons impacted by the breach were provided 24 months of identity theft protection services free of charge. There is no hint that unauthorized persons viewed any data saved on the stolen laptop computer.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan along with its subsidiary firm are evaluating policies and procedures and are upgrading them as necessary. More safety measures will additionally be enforced to avert further information breaches.

James Keogh

James Keogh has been writing about the healthcare sector in the United States for several years and is currently the editor of HIPAAnswers. He has a particular interest in HIPAA and the intersection of healthcare privacy and information technology. He has developed specialized knowledge in HIPAA-related issues, including compliance, patient privacy, and data breaches. You can follow James on Twitter https://x.com/JamesKeoghHIPAA and contact James on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-keogh-89023681 or email directly at [email protected]