The latest “data security incident” began Thursday at facilities operated by Prospect, which is based in California and has hospitals and clinics there and in Texas, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania, AP reported.
“Upon learning of this, we took our systems offline to protect them and launched an investigation with the help of third-party cybersecurity specialists,” the company said in a statement Friday.
“While our investigation continues, we are focused on addressing the pressing needs of our patients as we work diligently to return to normal operations as quickly as possible.”
In Connecticut, the emergency departments at Manchester Memorial and Rockville General Hospital were closed for much of Thursday and patients were diverted to other nearby medical centers.
Similar disruptions also were reported at other facilities system-wide.
The FBI in Connecticut issued a statement saying it is working with “law enforcement partners and the victim entities” but could not comment further on an ongoing investigation.
“Waterbury Hospital is following downtime procedures, including the use of paper records, until the situation is resolved,” spokeswoman Lauresha Xhihani, said in a statement. “We are working closely with IT security experts to resolve it as quickly as possible.”
In California, the company has seven hospitals in Los Angeles and Orange counties including two behavioral health facilities and a 130-bed acute care hospital in Los Angeles, according to Prospect's website. Messages sent to representatives for these hospitals were not immediately returned.
AMK/PR