Quincy, Massachusetts-based Shields Health Care says it is investigating a data security breach that may have impacted 56 health care facilities and their patients.
Shields, which provides management and imaging services for health care facilities, said in a statement posted on its website that it "became aware of suspicious activity" on its network on March 28 and launched an investigation to determine the full scope of the incident.
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With help from third-party forensic specialists, the company said it took "immediate steps" to contain the incident and find out how it happened. An investigation determined that someone gained access to some Shields systems and acquired data from March 7 to March 21.
So far, Shields said it hasn't found any evidence indicating that any information from the incident was used to commit identity theft or fraud. The information could include names, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, home addresses, provider information, diagnosis, billing information, insurance information, medical record numbers, patient IDs and other medical treatment information.
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The health care company said its review of the impacted data is still ongoing. Once it has completed its review, Shields said it will be directly contacting impacted individuals so they can take steps to protect their information if they wish to do so.
The breach has been reported to federal law enforcement and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights. That agency reported on its website that 2 million people were affected. An FBI spokesperson said the agency had no comment.
Shields has about 40 locations, mostly in Massachusetts but also in New Hampshire and Maine.
Shields also included a list of dozens of facility partners that may have been affected, including Tufts Medical Center, Central Maine Medical Center and UMass Memorial.
A full list of Shields partner facilities can be found below:
| Baystate Health Urgent Care, LLC |
| Baystate MRI & Imaging Center, LLC |
| Brighton Imaging Center, LLC |
| Cape Cod CT Services, LLC |
| Cape Cod Imaging Services, LLC (a business associate to Falmouth Hospital Association, Inc) |
| Cape Cod PET/CT Services, LLC |
| Cape Cod Radiation Therapy Service, LLC |
| Central Maine Medical Center |
| Emerson Hospital |
| Fall River/New Bedford Regional MRI Limited Partnership |
| Falmouth Hospital Association, Inc. |
| Franklin MRI Center, LLC |
| Lahey Clinic MRI Services, LLC |
| Massachusetts Bay MRI Limited Partnership |
| Mercy Imaging, Inc. |
| MRI/CT of Providence, LLC |
| Newton-Wellesley MRI Limited Partnership |
| NW Imaging Management Company, LLC (a business associate to Newton Wellesley Orthopedic Associates, Inc.) |
| Newton-Wellesley Imaging, PC |
| Newton Wellesley Orthopedic Associates, Inc. |
| Northern MASS MRI Services, Inc. |
| PET-CT Services by Tufts Medical Center and Shields, LLC |
| Shields and Sports Medicine Atlantic Imaging Management Co, LLC (a business associate SportsMedicine Atlantic Orthopaedics P.A.) |
| Shields CT of Brockton, LLC |
| Shields Imaging at Anna Jaques Hospital, LLC |
| Shields Healthcare of Cambridge, Inc. |
| Shields Imaging at University Hospital, LLC |
| Shields Imaging at York Hospital, LLC |
| Shields Imaging Management at Emerson Hospital, LLC (a business associate to Emerson Hospital) |
| Shields Imaging of Eastern Mass, LLC |
| Shields Imaging of Lowell General Hospital, LLC |
| Shields Imaging of Portsmouth, LLC |
| Shields Imaging with Central Maine Health, LLC (a business associate to Central Maine Medical Center) |
| Shields Management Company, Inc. |
| Shields MRI & Imaging Center of Cape Cod, LLC |
| Shields MRI of Framingham, LLC |
| Shields PET/CT at CMMC, LLC |
| Shields PET_CT at Berkshire Medical Center, LLC |
| Shields PET-CT at Cooley Dickinson Hospital, LLC |
| Shields PET-CT at Emerson Hospital, LLC |
| Shields Radiology Associates, PC |
| Shields Signature Imaging, LLC |
| Shields Sturdy PET-CT, LLC |
| Shields-Tufts Medical Center Imaging Management, LLC (a business associate to Tufts Medical Center, Inc.) |
| South Shore Regional MRI Limited Partnership |
| Southeastern Massachusetts Regional MRI Limited Partnership |
| SportsMedicine Atlantic Orthopaedics P.A. |
| Tufts Medical Center, Inc. |
| UMass Memorial HealthAlliance MRI Center, LLC |
| UMass Memorial MRI – Marlborough, LLC |
| UMass Memorial MRI & Imaging Center, LLC |
| Winchester Hospital / Shields MRI, LLC |
| Radiation Therapy of Southeastern Massachusetts, LLC |
| Radiation Therapy of Winchester, LLC |
| South Suburban Oncology Center Limited Partnership |
| Shields Imaging of North Shore, LLC |
Anyone with additional questions can call 855-503-3386. More information on what steps people can take to protect their information can be found here.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
