Harbor Regional Health responds to cyber security event on billing partner

Harbor Regional Health says that they have addressed and continue to monitor a cybersecurity incident involving their third-party billing service provider, Change Healthcare. 

They say they are keeping abreast of the situation, but what they know of the severity and specifics of the event is what is readily available in the national media.

According to Reuters, the problems began last week after hackers working for the ‘Blackcat’ ransomware gang gained access to Change Healthcare’s information technology systems and it has led to disruptions at pharmacies across the United States.

“We understand that incidents like these can be concerning, however we want to explicitly reassure our patients and community that this event has not compromised Harbor Regional Health’s network, or the quality of healthcare services our hospital and clinics provide. “

After an investigation, the hospital’s IT department and outside cybersecurity partners say that they are confident that their IT infrastructure has not been affected.

If you’ve encountered difficulties making payments through the patient portal or via phone recently, please be aware that these services are temporarily unavailable due to this on-going situation. 

“We understand the inconvenience this may cause and are actively working on alternative solutions to ensure you can contact us and manage your payments.”

What does this mean for our patients?

We will continue serving our patients at all HRH facilities while this situation is resolved.

If your account DOES NOT begin with a “G” you can still make payments as usual.

For accounts that begin with a “G,” we cannot currently accept credit card payments over the phone, online, or in-person.

Current options for making payments on “G” accounts?

You are able to pay cash or check in-person with a registration professional at Community Hospital or one our Family Medicine clinics in Montesano, Hoquiam, or Aberdeen.

You can pay by check via mail to the address on your statement. Please do not mail cash.

What happens next?

While the hospital awaits further details from Change Healthcare and the FBI, they will not be able to process claims connected to the biller.

The sending of billing statements will pause for all Harbor Regional Health entities, including Community Hospital and the Medical Group until the situation is resolved.

No new accounts will be referred to the Collections partner until this is resolved.

“Before we begin sending out statements again, we will inform the public through social media posts and press releases.

As we cannot current process new claims, the clock will not start on when payments are due until we can once again send statements.”

If you have questions, you are asked to call the main hospital line at 360-532-8330 and ask to be connected to Patient Financial services.

“Again, we are not able to take payments by phone, but we can try to answer your questions as best we can with the information that has been shared with us.”

“We sincerely apologize for this inconvenience. We recognize that this may bring significant challenges to our patients and we want to assure you that we are doing everything we can to keep your health data safe, and to help you through this process. Please call if you have questions or concerns, and make sure that if you are on Facebook or Instagram that you follow us for the most up-to-date information.”