Prima CARE, P.C. Data Breach (2015)

Prima CARE, P.C. sent data breach notification letters to 1,651 patients after it recovered a binder containing personal information. The documents were found in the pushes in a parking lot on May 25, 2015. Prima said in an announcement on its website that it became aware of the incident on June 4, 2015. Potentially compromised information includes names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, medical record numbers, hospital account numbers, insurance numbers, treatment date(s) and certain clinical information. The information was on patients who received care from Prima healthcare providers between 2007 and 2012. "The binders were promptly returned after being discovered and are now safely in Prima CARE's possession," the statement read. "An investigation determined that the binders were created by a former Prima CARE employee who used the information to track work performance, but had failed to appropriately file or discard the documents following their use." Prima added that the improper disposal was done without its knowledge or consent, and was in violation of its practices. "We take the privacy and security of our patients' information seriously and have taken steps to mitigate the potential for any harm to result from this incident and to prevent a similar event from occurring in the future," Prima explained.