Published · United States
HIPAABreach report
HHS Office for Civil Rights warns Ridgeway Pharmacy over breach affecting 259,000 patients
Ridgeway Pharmacy in Montana disclosed a breach on 22 October 2026 that exposed personal health information of nearly 259,000 individuals.
What happened
A data breach at Ridgeway Pharmacy in Montana was reported on 22 October 2026, affecting almost 259,000 individuals. The breach involved unauthorized access to protected health information. Under HIPAA, the pharmacy must notify affected individuals and the HHS OCR. No enforcement action has been announced yet.
Why it matters
Pharmacies and other covered entities should verify their breach detection and response procedures, ensuring timely notifications and OCR reporting to avoid penalties.
Business impact
Failure to meet HIPAA breach‑notification timelines can trigger significant fines and damage reputation.
Drafted automatically from the sources below. How we write summaries
Does this summary seem wrong?What to check
Notify affected individualsHigh priority
Send breach notices to all 259,000 individuals within 60 days of discovery.
Report to OCRHigh priority
File a breach report with the HHS Office for Civil Rights within the statutory deadline.
Conduct a post‑breach risk assessmentMedium priority
Identify root causes and remediate security gaps to prevent recurrence.
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