Ransomware Attacks at Lake Region Healthcare and the University of Vermont Health Network

Lake Region Healthcare located in Fergus Falls, Minnesota is having an investigation of a ransomware attack detected on December 22, 2020. The ransomware attack impacted a number of systems of the healthcare company that interrupted regular services at its centers in Battle Lake, Fergus Falls, Barnesville and Ashby. Prior to the attack, the provider had established and enforced emergency measures. Therefore, it had the ability to deliver patient care even while the investigation is ongoing and remedying disruption.

Third-party cybersecurity professionals assisted with the investigation to determine the magnitude of the attack. While the investigation is underway, Lake Region healthcare had recovered almost all the systems impacted by the ransomware and had services going just like before because of alternative systems.

Though data theft is prevalent prior to ransomware deployment, there’s no proof that suggests there was data theft. The provider went on to provide patient health care, nevertheless, patients were cautioned to contact the hospital to confirm their visits. More announcements will be presented as the investigation continues and all systems become accessible on the internet again.

University of Vermont Health Network Ransomware Attack Holds Back EHR Rollout

The University of Vermont Health Network in Burlington, VT had a ransomware attack on October 28, 2020 causing considerable disruption.

Even though the bulk of systems is currently back on the web for several weeks, the attack continues to affect certain places. For example, some applications aren’t available online yet. The radiology department is one of the departments encountering delays. After the incident, the University of Vermont Health Network mentioned that it had lost income of roughly $1.5 million per day.

Due to the attack, the supposed organization-wide rollout of its new Epic EHR system had been delayed. The new EHR system was a replacement for a patchwork of applications within and between hospitals owned by the network that are currently not entirely incorporated.

In 2020, different healthcare companies around the world, which include the University of Vermont Health Network, saw great obstacles as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic and had to deal with more ransomware attacks. The president and CEO of UVM, John Brumsted, M.D., mentioned that the health network has re-scheduled the use of the new EHR system 4 to 8 months later at some of its inpatient and outpatient facilities.

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Christine Garcia is the staff writer on Calculated HIPAA. Christine has several years experience in writing about healthcare sector issues with a focus on the compliance and cybersecurity issues. Christine has developed in-depth knowledge of HIPAA regulations. You can contact Christine at [email protected]. You can follow Christine on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ChrisCalHIPAA