Between hospitals having to turn to paper records and others notifying patients that their information may have been exposed, ransomware attacks have caused hospital executives to make cybersecurity a priority.
Below are 15 notable ransomware attacks this past year.
1. The Cancer Center of Hawaii on Oahu announced Dec. 11 that it had to temporarily suspend cancer radiation services at two treatment centers due to a ransomware attack.
2. North Platte, Neb.-based Great Plains Health had to restore its email, EHR and other computer services after being targeted in a ransomware attack Nov. 25.
3. Staff at more than 110 nursing homes and acute-care facilities were unable to access patient records after internet security and data storage services provider Virtual Care Provider was hit with a ransomware attack.
4. Cape Girardeau, Mo.-based Saint Francis Healthcare System began notifying patients Nov. 20 about a ransomware attack at the system's Ferguson Medical Group.
5. Milwaukie, Ore.-based Monterey Health Center announced Oct. 11 that it notified patients their protected health information may have been exposed because of a ransomware attack.
6. All three Tuscaloosa, Ala.-based DCH Health System hospitals temporarily closed to new patients due to a targeted Oct. 1 ransomware attack.
7. Wood Ranch Medical announced Sept. 18 that it would close in December after a ransomware attack caused the Simi Valley, Calif.-based medical clinic to lose all access to its patients' medical records. The clinic closed Dec. 17.
8. Omaha, Neb.-based CHI Health Lakeside Hospital announced Sept. 27 it was hit by a ransomware attack that may have exposed patients' protected health information.
9. Gillette, Wyo.-based Campbell County Health suspended new inpatient admissions and canceled some surgeries Sept. 20 due to a ransomware attack.
10. Pleasant Grove, Utah-based Premier Family Medicine alerted 320,000 patients that their health information may have been exposed in a ransomware attack.
11. Louisiana physicians' network Imperial Health alerted more than 116,000 patients of a ransomware attack that may have compromised their personal information.
12. An April ransomware attack on Evansville, Ind.-based Talley Medical Surgical Eyecare Associates' network server and EHR system may have compromised 106,000 patient records.
13. Placerville, Calif.-based Shingle Springs Health and Wellness Center discovered that its server infrastructure was infected with ransomware on April 7, which may have compromised the protected health information of 21,513 patients.
14. Both Olean (N.Y.) Medical Group and Seneca Nation Health System in Salamanca, N.Y., temporarily lost access to their computer and EHR systems following cyberattacks on the organizations.
15. A ransomware attack on a Grand Haven, Mich.-based North Ottawa Community Health System's vendor may have compromised data from an estimated 15,000 patients.