A file containing identifying information for every physician in the country contracted with a Blue-affiliated insurance plan was on a laptop computer stolen from a BlueCross BlueShield Association (BCBSA) employee. According to BCBSA, it is not yet known whether any identity theft has resulted from the data breach.
The breach involved a data set containing names, addresses, taxpayer ID numbers, and NPI numbers of physicians and other health care professionals. The data are used in performing internal matching analyses to compare BCBS provider networks to the networks of other health plans for employer groups.
According to BCBSA, the identifying information was not the intended target of the theft. The data set was stored on a laptop that was stolen from a car, which was one of several cars in the immediate vicinity that were vandalized. There is no reason to believe that the thief intends to use the data to commit identity theft. However, as a precaution, BCBSA is offering credit monitoring services to those providers whose Social Security number was exposed.
If you have questions about the data breach, please contact your local BCBS Plan at their regular customer service number.
