Humana says some members may have had personal information exposed

Published 4:18 pm Friday, March 5, 2021

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Humana is notifying some 3,400 members in Alabama that personal information may have been exposed when a subcontractor’s employee inappropriately discolsed medical records to unauthorized individuals, according to a release.

Approximately 65,000 health plan members are being notified, the company said in a release.

Cotiviti is a company that helps Humana request medical records needed to verify data reported to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Cotiviti in turn uses a subcontractor to review the collected medical records. An employee of that subcontractor, who was authorized to access and use the data for Humana purposes, inappropriately disclosed information to unapproved individuals for unauthorized training purposes between Oct. 12, 2020 and Dec. 16, 2020. Humana was informed on Dec. 22, 2020.

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The subcontractor immediately disabled the access of the now former employee. Both Cotiviti and its subcontractor put in place a broad strategy to prevent any further unauthorized disclosure of information. Humana also worked with Cotiviti to ensure it took immediate steps to enhance protections and secure personal information now and into the future. To help prevent something like this from happening again, Humana took prompt action to ensure the appropriate physical and technical safeguards are in place at Cotiviti and its subcontractor.

Information including name, date of birth, Social Security Number (full or partial), address, phone number, email address, insurance identification numbers, provider name, date of service, medical record number, treatment information and imagery (x-ray, photographs, etc.) may have been part of the medical records involved.

While Humana does not believe this personal information will be used inappropriately because of this event, Humana takes seriously its responsibility to ensure the security of personal information and regrets any concern this event may have caused. Humana is offering Credit Watch<sup>TM</sup> Gold with 3-in-1 Monitoring identity theft protection, through Equifax, for two years to affected Humana members at no cost.

In addition, Humana is advising members to remain vigilant by reviewing documents for suspicious activity, including Explanation of Benefit (EOB) letters, SmartSummary statements, medical records, account statements and credit reports. If members find unfamiliar activity on the statements they receive from Humana, they should notify Humana immediately. If they see suspicious activity on their credit report, they should call their local police office to file a report for identity theft.

Members with questions may contact Humana at 1-800-457-4708 or TTY, 1‐800‐833‐3301.