On February 10, 2023, Evergreen Treatment Services (“ETS”) filed notice of a data breach with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (“HHS-OCR”) after learning that a recent cyberattack resulted in confidential patient information being leaked. Based on the company’s official filing, the incident resulted in an unauthorized party gaining access to patients’ names, addresses, dates of birth, Social Security Numbers and treatment information. After confirming that consumer data was leaked, ETS began sending out data breach notification letters to all individuals who were impacted by the recent data security incident.
Before you received services from Evergreen Treatment Services, the company asked you for your personal information. If you’re like most people, you didn’t have a second thought about providing Evergreen Treatment with everything it asked for. However, in the wake of the recent data breach, many current and past patients are starting to question whether the company did everything possible to protect the personal information in its possession. As we’ve discussed in prior posts, companies like Evergreen Treatment are the first and last lines of defense against a data breach. And, if the pending investigation into the ETS data breach confirms that the company was negligent in how it handled your information, you may be able to pursue a claim for financial compensation against Evergreen Treatment Services.
What We Know So Far About the Evergreen Treatment Breach
The available information regarding the Evergreen Treatment breach comes from the company’s filing with the HHS-OCR as well as a notice posted on the company’s website. According to this source, ETC recently discovered a cybersecurity incident that impacted the company’s IT systems. Evergreen did not disclose the dates of the attack or when the company realized it had been the victim of a cyberattack. However, in response to learning about the incident, Evergreen began working with third-party cybersecurity experts to investigate the incident and determine what, if any, patient information was affected.
Evergreen’s investigation confirmed that an unauthorized party was able to access the company’s computer network, including files containing confidential patient data.
Upon discovering that sensitive patient data was made available to an unauthorized party, Evergreen Treatment began to review the affected files to determine what information was compromised and which consumers were impacted. While the breached information varies depending on the individual, it may include your name, address, date of birth, Social Security Number and treatment information. According to the HHS-OCR, the ETS data breach affected 21,325 past and current patients.
On February 10, 2023, Evergreen Treatment sent out data breach letters to all individuals whose information was compromised as a result of the recent data security incident.
More Information About Evergreen Treatment Services
Founded in 1973, Evergreen Treatment Services is a substance abuse treatment facility based in Seattle, Washington. Evergreen Treatment had four locations, including the company’s Seattle Clinic, South King County Clinic, South Sound Clinic and Reach Clinic. The company uses evidence-based treatment approaches for those experiencing substance abuse disorder and also connects residents who are experiencing homelessness with social services. Evergreen Treatment employs more than 267 people and generates approximately $11.4 million in annual revenue.
