Becker's Hospital Review

39 CIO / HEALTH IT PIH Health notifies nearly 200,000 patients of phishing attack By Mackenzie Garrity W hittier, Calif.-based PIH Health began notifying 199,548 patients on Jan. 10 that their protected health information may have been exposed in a data breach. On June 18, 2019, PIH Health discovered that a limited number of employees' email accounts had been compro- mised in a phishing attack. Upon investigation, officials determined that the email accounts had been accessed between June 11-18, 2019. While unclear what information was stored in the email accounts, PIH Health disclosed that the data of certain current and former patients was contained in the affected email accounts. Immediately after discovering phishing attack, PIH Health had the affected employees reset their email account passwords. There is no evidence that any patient information has been misused. "The privacy and protection of private information is a top priority for PIH Health. PIH Health deeply regrets any inconvenience or concern this incident may cause," the health system said in a statement. n Providence expands investment in patient-provider matching startup By Andrea Park K yruus, developer of search and scheduling software for healthcare providers, closed a $42 million Series D funding round that included participation from Renton, Wash.-based Providence's venture arm. Providence Ventures previously invested in Kyruus' $25 million Series C in 2015, as well as a $10 million strategic fundraise closed in 2018. "To compete effectively with both traditional and new care options and collaborate with emerging digital platforms, health systems need to be digital transaction-ready," Aaron Martin, executive vice president and chief digital officer at Providence and managing general partner of Providence Ventures, said in a news release. "Providing consumers with a modern and accurate provider search experience is core to these efforts, making the Kyruus platform a critical part of a health system's digital stack." In 2019, Kyruus added 20 new health system partners to its platform, according to the release, and now counts more than 50 of the top 300 health systems in the U.S. among its clients. The company also has announced partnerships with consumer-facing companies such as Uber Health and Brandify. n Forget Dr. Google — Gen Z is getting medical debt advice from TikTok By Andrea Park T hough TikTok is perhaps best known for its endless scroll of dancing and lip-syncing videos — courtesy of a predominantly Generation Z-aged user base — some users have found the app to be a useful platform for dispensing and receiving medical advice. One user, for example, racked up more than 756,000 likes and 3,000 comments for a Dec. 3 video in which she recommends that viewers with large amounts of medical debt call their healthcare provider and ask first for a review of the level of care, then for an itemized bill, e New York Times reported. In the minute-long video, Shaunna Burns suggests that, upon receiv- ing this request, rather than revealing that a patient has been charged "$37 for a f— band-aid," a provider will instead remove all similarly minor charges, potentially resulting in hundreds of dollars of savings. Several health experts told NYT Ms. Burns' advice is a good place to start for those struggling with medical debt. Indeed, one of the video's viewers, 22-year-old Eva Zavala, told NYT she followed Ms. Burns' advice and saw a recent hospital bill she had received for a trip to the emergency room that included an ultrasound and blood work, totaling more than $1,000 aer insurance, reduced to zero. e health system could not confirm to NYT whether it was Ms. Zavala's phone call requesting an itemized bill that resulted in the zero balance, saying only that they offer flexible financial assistance programs. Ms. Zavala had reportedly not been notified of having financial assistance applied to her debt. Ms. Burns is not the only TikTok user offering medical advice: Many phy- sicians and nurses use the app to share their expertise about various med- ical conditions and procedures, NYT reported, providing much-needed healthcare information to a digital-first generation that research shows is more dissatisfied than any previous cohort about the effectiveness, convenience, transparency and efficiency of their healthcare. n

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