On August 9, 2024, Pemiscot Memorial Health System (“Pemiscot Memorial”) filed a notice of data breach with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights after discovering that an unauthorized party was able to access information in the company’s possession. In this notice, Pemiscot Memorial explains that the incident resulted in an unauthorized party being able to access patients’ sensitive information. Upon completing its investigation, Pemiscot Memorial began sending out data breach notification letters to all individuals whose information was affected by the recent data security incident.
If you receive a data breach notification from Pemiscot Memorial Health System, it is essential you understand what is at risk and what you can do about it. A data breach lawyer can help you learn more about how to protect yourself from becoming a victim of fraud or identity theft, as well as discuss your legal options following the Pemiscot Memorial Hospital data breach. For more information, please see our recent piece on the topic here.
What Caused the Pemiscot Memorial Hospital Data Breach?
The Pemiscot Memorial Hospital data breach was only recently announced, and more information is expected in the near future. Pemiscot Memorial’s filing with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights provides some information on what led up to the breach; however, the filing does not detail what happened or what information was leaked as a result.
What we do know is that Pemiscot Memorial recently detected a potential data security incident and, upon conducting an investigation, confirmed that an unauthorized party had gained access to confidential patient information in the company’s possession. However, at this point, we cannot confirm that the cyberattack was against Pemiscot Memorial, as it may have targeted one of Pemiscot Memorial’s third-party vendors.
Regardless, after learning that sensitive patient data was accessible to an unauthorized party, Pemiscot Memorial Hospital reviewed the compromised files to determine what information was leaked and which patients were impacted. Pemiscot Memorial recently completed this process.
On August 9, 2024, Pemiscot Memorial Hospital filed notice of the breach with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights. Typically, this is around the time that companies send out data breach letters to victims; however, the timeline in the Pemiscot Memorial data breach may be different. Either way, these letters, once sent, should provide victims with a list of what information belonging to them was compromised.
More Information About Pemiscot Memorial Health System
Pemiscot Memorial Health System is a healthcare services provider based out of Hayti, Missouri. Pemiscot Memorial Hospital is a 101-bed facility that serves residents of Pemiscot, eastern Dunklin and southern New Madrid Counties in Southeast Missouri. In total, Pemiscot Memorial Health System operates about ten locations, including Pemiscot Primary Care Clinic, Pemiscot Pain Clinic, Wound Care Clinic, Pemiscot Convenient Care, and Pemiscot Memorial Hospital. Pemiscot Memorial Hospital employs more than 85 people and generates approximately $12 million in annual revenue.
