Center for Health Care Services to notify 28,434 patients of personal information breach

Terminated employee had information on personal laptop, officials say

SAN ANTONIO – Bexar County's Center For Health Care Services is notifying 28,434 patients of a breach of privacy on their personal and health information.

According to a news release, a former CHCS employee was found to have secretly taken personal health information on his personal laptop computer when he was fired in May 2016.

The discovery was not made until Nov. 7, 2017, when documents surfaced during litigation between the former employee and CHCS.

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The information is believed to exist in the files of the former employee, his attorneys and CHCS attorneys. 

CHCS officials don't believe the information has been shared with others.  

Attorneys for CHCS are seeking a protective order to prevent further disclosure of the information and to verify deletion of the information.

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The protected health information includes names, addresses, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, medical record numbers, dates of services, referral information, progress notes, types of services, diagnoses, medications, lab and toxicology reports, autopsy reports, death certificates, treatment plans, discharge and death summaries and collateral hospital information, the news release said. 

Patients don't need to take steps to protect themselves from potential harm due to the breach, CHCS officials said.

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As a result of the breach, CHCS is taking action to improve the security of its operations and eliminate future risk.

The Center for Health Care Services provides services to people with mental health and substance abuse.


About the Author:

David Ibañez has been managing editor of KSAT.com since the website's launch in October 2000.