Cybersecurity incident disrupts operations at multiple Covenant Health facilities

Several hospitals operated by Covenant Health have disclosed experiencing a data security incident that significantly impacted their daily operations.

 

Covenant Health, a Catholic healthcare organisation, operates three hospitals, St. Joseph Hospital and St. Mary’s Health System in Maine, and another St. Joseph Hospital in New Hampshire and caters to patients across Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont.

 

In a notice on its website, St. Mary’s Health System said it is “experiencing a temporary system issue that may affect phones and internet access. Some services may be intermittently unavailable.”

 

A similar message was shared on the hospital’s social media account, noting that patients may experience delays in receiving services.

 

“At this time, the lab is only able to process paper orders or orders that can be shown through MyChart,” reads the post.

 

St. Joseph Hospital published a similar message on its website, confirming a data security incident and acknowledging delays in patient care.

 

“Due to a temporary system issue, we are adjusting our outpatient lab services. For the time being, labs will only be available at our main hospital campus, and services can be provided only with a physical order in hand,” St. Joseph Hospital said.

 

Commenting on the news of a data security incident, in a statement shared with media, a Covenant Health spokesperson said, “On Monday, May 26, Covenant Health became aware of irregularities impacting connectivity across the organisation. Out of an abundance of caution, we immediately discontinued access to all data systems in our hospitals, clinics and provider practices.

 

“We are working to provide healthcare services as normal. Patients are encouraged to keep all appointments. If patients have questions, they should contact their provider’s office.”

 

At the time of publishing, no known hacker group claimed responsibility for the cyber attack on Covenant Health. The healthcare organisation also did not share details on who was behind the attack, how much data was compromised, or whether it has received a ransom demand.