Anthem pays OCR $16 Million in record HIPAA settlement following largest health data breach in history — $16,000,000
Resolution Oct 2018
Penalty
$16,000,000
Action type
Settlement
Entity profile
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Case number
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What went wrong
Anthem pays OCR $16 Million in record HIPAA settlement following largest health data breach in history – October 15, 2018
- Navigate to: HIPAA for Professionals Regulatory Initiatives Privacy Summary of the Privacy Rule Guidance Combined Text of All Rules HIPAA Related Links Security Security Rule NPRM Summary of the Security Rule Security Guidance Cyber Security Guidance Breach Notification Breach Reporting Guidance Reports to Congress Regulation History Compliance & Enforcement Enforcement Rule Enforcement Process En
Full description
Navigate to: HIPAA for Professionals Regulatory Initiatives Privacy Summary of the Privacy Rule Guidance Combined Text of All Rules HIPAA Related Links Security Security Rule NPRM Summary of the Security Rule Security Guidance Cyber Security Guidance Breach Notification Breach Reporting Guidance Reports to Congress Regulation History Compliance & Enforcement Enforcement Rule Enforcement Process Enforcement Data Resolution Agreements Case Examples Audit Reports to Congress State Attorneys General Special Topics Parental Access Mental and Behavioral Health Change Healthcare Cybersecurity Incident FAQs HIPAA and COVID-19 HIPAA and Reproductive Health HIPAA and Final Rule Notice HIPAA and Telehealth HIPAA and FERPA Research Public Health Emergency Response Health Information Technology Health Apps Patient Safety Covered Entities & Business Associates Business Associate Contracts Business Associates Training & Resources FAQs for Professionals Other Administrative Simplification Rules Substance Use Disorder Confidentiality Anthem pays OCR $16 Million in record HIPAA settlement following largest health data breach in history - October 15, 2018 Anthem, Inc. has agreed to pay $16 million to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and take substantial corrective action to settle potential violations of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy and Security Rules after a series of cyberattacks led to the largest health data breach in history and exposed the electronic protected health information of almost 79 million people. Read the HHS Press Release Read the Resolution Agreement Content last reviewed October 15, 2018
Timeline
- ResolutionOct 2018
- Incident and investigation milestones are not consistently published by OCR in machine-readable form.
Key takeaways for your organization
- Treat internet-facing systems and vendor-hosted environments as in-scope for HIPAA risk analysis and technical safeguards testing.
- Maintain an actionable risk analysis tied to remediation milestones; evidence should map to Security Rule implementation specifications.
- Align policies, procedures, and evidence with the specific CFR provisions cited in OCR resolutions affecting your entity type.
- Run tabletop exercises for breach response, OCR inquiry handling, and privilege-preserving communications with counsel.
Related actions
OCR Resolves Twentieth Investigation in HIPAA Right of Access Initiative with $80,000 Settlement
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$80,000
Clinical Laboratory Pays $25,000 to Settle Potential HIPAA Security Rule Violations
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$25,000
HHS Office for Civil Rights Imposes a $200,000 Penalty Against Oregon Health & Science University for Failure to Provide Timely Access to Patient Records
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$200,000
Source
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services release
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights. medcomply.ai aggregates public materials for educational use — not legal advice.