UnitedHealth Group (UHG) is facing questions from a lawmaker over the types of patient data, including Medicare records, that were compromised during the February 21 cyberattack at its Change Healthcare unit.
On March 25, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, sent a letter to UHG head Andrew Witty asking 12 questions about the breach and its impact on patients and others. This latest move follows others from lawmakers seeking to know more about the breach and the response to it from UHG as well as the Health and Human Services agency.
Noting that Change Healthcare reportedly handles medical records for one in three U.S. patients and provides services to others, Raskin highlights in the letter the "significant and far-reaching" consequences of the unit's prolonged outage. He asked for UHG to respond to the letter by April 8.
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
Questions asked include ones about the types of information, including types of personally identifiable information and protected health information, that were compromised in the attack.
UHG is also asked to specify the scope of records from Medicare, Medicaid and Tricare beneficiaries that were compromised.
UHG did not immediately respond to a Kiplinger request for comment.
In a recent website update, UnitedHealth said said it has begun to process its claims backlog and that more than $14 billion in claims should “start flowing soon.” The insurer previously said that about 99% of Change Healthcare’s pharmacy network services were restored on March 7 and its electronic payments were restored on March 15.
Even so, the impact of the breach continues to be felt across the healthcare system, according to a number of healthcare professionals and organizations.
Tricare, which provides prescriptions to military clinics and hospitals worldwide, continues to say on its website that military clinics and hospitals are providing ongoing prescriptions through manual procedures until the Change Healthcare issue is resolved. Tricare also continues to direct beneficiaries to reach out to their specific pharmacy, clinic or hospital for local updates.
Growing data breaches in healthcare
As Raskin noted in his letter, about 725 data breaches were reported within the U.S. healthcare system last year. This is a 162% increase in the last decade, he said.
"The rising number of cyberattacks against the U.S. healthcare system, especially against an actor that holds outsized influence on the market, poses a clear and present threat to national security and public health," the lawmaker said in the letter.
Examples of cyberattacks in the last year resulting in massive data breaches include mail order prescription firm Truepill's data breach that exposed data of 2.3 million patients last November, as well as Medicare's data breach in July that exposed the personal information of more than 600,000 Medicare beneficiaries and millions of other healthcare consumers.
For help during this time, Tricare directs users to check its patient portal for outages for updates and information such as how to refill and check the status of your prescriptions at military pharmacies.
Related Content
-
Could This Little Known Data Shift Hurt Your 2026 Social Security COLA?The BLS has changed how it measures the inflationary data that determines whether Social Security benefits will get a Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA). Will it hurt your benefits?
-
Financial Pros Provide a Beginner's Guide to Building Wealth in 10 YearsBuilding wealth over 10 years requires understanding your current financial situation, budgeting effectively, eliminating high-interest debt and increasing both your income and financial literacy.
-
2026 Social Security COLA: The Little Known Data Shift That Could Impact Millions of Retirees' Benefits
The BLS has changed how it measures the inflationary data that determines whether Social Security benefits will get a Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA). Will it hurt your benefits?
-
Financial Pros Provide a Beginner's Guide to Building Wealth in 10 Years
Building wealth over 10 years requires understanding your current financial situation, budgeting effectively, eliminating high-interest debt and increasing both your income and financial literacy.
-
You're Divorced, But the Work Isn't Over: A Guide to Five Financial Tasks to Do ASAPOnce your divorce is settled, don't waste time. You've got to tie up some important loose ends or risk losing money and facing tax consequences.
-
The Delightful Way to Protect Your Cognitive HealthYou know the drill — protect your cognitive health by eating well, exercising and socializing. But this newfound way to boost brain health is pure pleasure.
-
Five Mistakes to Avoid in Your First Year of RetirementRetirement brings the freedom to choose how to spend your money and time. But choices made in the initial rush of excitement could create problems in future.
-
I'm an Investing Expert: This Is How You Can Invest Like Warren BuffettBuffett just invested $15 billion in oil and gas, and you can leverage the same strategy in your IRA to potentially generate 8% to 12% quarterly cash flow while taking advantage of tax benefits that are unavailable in any other investment class.
-
Integrity, Generosity and Wealth: A Faith-Based Approach to BusinessEntrepreneurs who align their business and financial decisions with the biblical principles of integrity, generosity and helping others can realize impactful and fulfilling success.
-
I’m 62 and Worried About Social Security’s Future. Should I Take It Early?A Social Security shortfall may be coming soon. We ask financial experts for guidance.
