Although Change Healthcare has made progress in restoring its technology, the American Hospital Association says it will take several weeks, if not months, before hospitals and other healthcare providers can fully recover from it.
"We appreciate the information that UnitedHealth Group has laid out regarding an aspirational timeline of potential technical relief for this historic cyberattack on the U.S. healthcare system," AHA President and CEO Rick Pollack said in a March 8 statement. "However, nothing in the announcement materially changes the chronic cash flow implications and uncertainty that our nation's hospitals and physicians are experiencing as a result."
The AHA said it is working with the HHS, Congress, UnitedHealth Group and other payers to make sure that all available assistance avenues are explored in order to ensure the healthcare sector's ability to consistently provide care for patients and communities.
The AHA statement comes after Change Healthcare stated that it expects to have its key system functionalities restored by mid-March following the Feb. 21 cybersecurity incident.