Colorado Department of Human Services Data Breach (2014)

Colorado health officials say they accidentally violated the medical privacy of about 15,000 people in a recent postcard mailing. The postcards were mailed as part of a survey sent to people receiving behavioral health services through Medicaid or the Department of Human Services' Office of Behavioral Health. The breach was announced Friday. State officials say that no financial information or Social Securitynumbers were disclosed. Instead, the information was protected health information. Whether someone receives behavioral health care services is considered protected private medical information. The survey postcards were sent on July 30 and September 3. The state agency that sent the postcards says it is notifying impacted clients and revising policies to prevent future privacy breaches.