Cyberattack on healthcare network impacts Nebraska hospitals

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – A recent cyberattack on a national healthcare network is still impacting many Nebraska hospitals, officials say.

UnitedHealth Group reported the attack on its Change Healthcare IT systems to the SEC last week. The company had detected the attack on Wednesday, Feb. 21, and said in its filing that it expected the attack to continue through the next day.

Gray News reported on Friday that pharmacies across the country — including CVS, Walgreens, and GoodRx — were having trouble processing some prescriptions because of that attack.

Noting an increase in frequency and sophistication of ransomware attacks on hospitals and other healthcare systems — over the last two years in particular — the American Hospital Association and Nebraska Hospital Association have called on the U.S. health department to provide “immedate regulatory flexibility” as well as financial support as they navigate the disruption.

Wednesday, the NHA said in a news release that the attack had disrupted “a number of its systems and services,” including authorizations for prescriptions, procedures, and surgeries; inpatient insurance verification; as well as cost estimates and patient billing.

“Due to this incident, Nebraskans may experience longer wait times regarding authorizations for procedures, as well as delays in resolution of claims,” NHA President Jeremy Nordquist said in the release. “Our hospitals ask Nebraskans to be understanding as we work through these challenges.”

He said that hospitals were working to manage the challenges “as quickly and efficiently as possible.”

According to the NHA release, the AHA had been in contact with the FBI, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency about the attack.

Copyright 2024 WOWT. All rights reserved.