California agency to investigate HealthNet
As we predicted yesterday, HealthNet's breach of personal information of almost 2 million people, is already the subject of a state government agency's investigation. Via Health Leaders Media:
After Health Net, Inc. in California announced Monday that several data servers containing sensitive health and personal information on its enrollees are unaccounted for, state officials said the security breach involves 'personal information for 1.9 million current and past enrollees nationwide.'
The California Department of Managed Health Care, the only stand-alone HMO watchdog agency in the nation, also provided further details beyond the plan's statement, saying that the missing records on nine servers are 'for more than 622,000 enrollees in Health Net products regulated by the DMHC, more than 223,000 enrolled in the California Department of Insurance products (another state agency that has oversight responsibility) and a number enrolled in Medicare.'
'The DMHC has opened an investigation into Health Net's security practices," said DMHC spokesperson Lynne Randolph. "Health Net has agreed to provide two years of free credit monitoring services to its California enrollees, in addition to identity theft insurance, fraud resolution and restoration of credit files, if needed.'
This may not be the last government investigation for the embattled insurer. For more information on the breach, please click here.
