The Rehabilitation Hospital of Southern New Mexico in Las Cruces faced a significant cybersecurity breach, compromising sensitive personal and medical information. Between January 16 and February 4, hackers gained access to the hospital’s IT network, exposing data such as names, addresses, dates of birth, and medical records of thousands of patients.
Patient information, including health insurance plan member IDs, was also compromised, affecting approximately 5,466 individuals, according to data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In response to the breach, the hospital began mailing letters on March 29 to patients whose Social Security numbers and driver’s license information might have been accessed, offering complimentary credit monitoring and identity protection services.
Sara Goldstein, a partner at BakerHostetler, emphasized the hospital’s serious approach to the incident, stating that safeguards were promptly implemented to prevent future breaches. This breach adds to a string of cybersecurity incidents affecting healthcare facilities in New Mexico this year, including the Advanced Care Hospital of Southern New Mexico and Artesia General Hospital, highlighting the growing threat cyber attacks pose to sensitive patient data and the urgent need for robust cybersecurity measures within the healthcare sector.
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