A recent HIPAA breach serves as a wake-up call for all businesses handling protected health information (PHI)—especially small and midsize organizations. On April 23, 2025 the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced a $600,000 settlement with PIH Health, Inc., a California-based healthcare network. The reason? A phishing attack that compromised nearly 190,000 patients’ sensitive data.
This case underscores a key truth: cyber threats like phishing are no longer “if,” but “when.” And HIPAA-regulated entities that fail to proactively strengthen their cybersecurity posture face serious financial, legal, and reputational consequences.
The PIH Health HIPAA Breach: What Happened?
In June 2019, a phishing email led to the compromise of 45 PIH employees’ email accounts. The exposed information included:
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Names and addresses
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Dates of birth and Social Security numbers
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Medical diagnoses, medications, and lab results
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Financial and insurance claim details
Despite discovering the breach in early 2020, OCR found PIH had delayed notifying affected individuals, HHS, and the media—an explicit violation of HIPAA’s Breach Notification Rule. Additional violations included:
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Failure to conduct a thorough risk analysis of their ePHI environment
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Inadequate safeguards against unauthorized disclosures
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Lack of timely response and communication following the breach
Why This Matters for Small and Midsize Businesses (SMBs)
You may think breaches like this only happen to large hospital networks. But in reality, SMBs are prime targets—often lacking the budget or in-house expertise to implement comprehensive cybersecurity measures.
Whether you’re a small clinic, dental office, or a business associate (like an IT provider or billing service), HIPAA holds you accountable. A single compromised account could mean massive liability if proper safeguards aren’t in place.
HIPAA Requirements You Shouldn’t Ignore
OCR’s corrective action plan for PIH is a playbook every HIPAA-regulated business should study. Key requirements include:
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Risk Analysis – Know where your ePHI lives and identify security vulnerabilities across your systems.
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Risk Management Plan – Act on the findings of your risk analysis with clear, documented security measures.
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Policy and Procedure Updates – Ensure written HIPAA policies are current and comprehensive.
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Ongoing Workforce Training – Deliver job-specific, frequent HIPAA training to all employees with access to PHI.
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Audit Controls – Monitor system access and usage to detect unauthorized behavior.
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Encryption – Protect ePHI in transit and at rest whenever feasible.
Action Steps for SMBs
Want to stay off OCR’s radar? Here’s where to start:
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Map out the flow of ePHI in your organization—from intake forms to billing systems.
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Regularly review your access controls. Who really needs to see what?
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Implement multi-factor authentication and phishing simulations to test your defenses.
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Partner with a HIPAA compliance expert who understands the unique challenges of SMBs.
Final Thoughts
OCR Acting Director Anthony Archeval put it best: “HIPAA-regulated entities need to be proactive and remedy the deficiencies in their HIPAA compliance programs before those deficiencies result in the impermissible disclosure of patients’ protected health information.”
That’s not just advice—it’s a warning.
At HIPAA Secure Now, we help SMBs like yours take the guesswork out of HIPAA compliance. From risk assessments to phishing simulations and employee training, we’ve got your back—so you can focus on your patients, not penalties.
Learn more about our affordable compliance solutions today!
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