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News in brief - May 19, 2008

Miami patient data stolen - Brailer firm invests in e-prescribing - WellPoint buys dental company - Aetna presses vendors to offer employee health benefits - Wal-Mart offers more drug discounts - UCSF patient information left online

Miami patient data stolen

Computer files containing private information on more than 2.1 million patients have been stolen from a storage company contracted by the University of Miami Health System.

UM officials said the files contain health and financial information on UM patients dating back to 1999. Data include names, addresses and Social Security numbers.

UM and a computer security firm hired to investigate the incident say that because of the security features on the files, it is unlikely the information can be accessed by a thief. The organization will notify by mail 47,000 patients whose data may have included financial information.

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Brailer firm invests in e-prescribing

David Brailer, MD, PhD, former national coordinator for health information technology, has entered the e-prescribing market after his investment firm, Health Evolution Partners, invested in the e-prescribing company Prematics.

The investment in Prematics, based in Bethesda, Md., is Health Evolution Partners' first since its founding. The amount was not disclosed.

Dr. Brailer founded Health Evolution Partners after resigning from his appointed post of national coordinator in 2006. He said entering the e-prescribing market was a major objective of his venture fund, and Prematics seemed to be the best choice. He will serve on the company's board of directors.

Kevin Hutchinson, former president and founder of the e-prescribing company SureScripts, is president and CEO of Prematics, which calls its e-prescribing system ScriptTone.

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WellPoint buys dental company

Health insurance giant WellPoint will become one of the country's largest dental insurers with the acquisition of DeCare Dental, a Minnesota-based dental plan that will bring WellPoint 21,000 group customers and nearly 4 million individual members.

Once the acquisition is completed, WellPoint's combined dental plan will have 9 million individual members, according to a news release from the company.

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Aetna presses vendors to offer employee health benefits

Aetna this month announced it will begin requiring its vendors to offer their employees health insurance.

The edict covers about 1,300 companies that provide Aetna with services from food to design work. The company said it plans to have 80% compliance by 2010, and full compliance by 2011. Aetna said it would not dictate the specific type of insurance plan those companies should offer.

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Wal-Mart offers more drug discounts

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has again expanded its $4 drug program, adding 90-day prescription drugs for $10, offering $4 over-the-counter medicines and increasing the number of medications for women included in the program.

The retailer's Wal-Mart and Sam's Club pharmacies will fill about 350 generic drugs at a cost of $10 for a 90-day supply, according to the company. Also, 30-day supplies of generic prescription drugs used to treat osteoporosis, breast cancer, menopause and hormone deficiency will cost $9.

In a new program offering, more than 1,000 over-the-counter medications -- including Wal-Mart's own Equate brand version of such drugs as Zantac and Claritin, as well as its Spring Valley private-label brand prenatal vitamins -- now cost $4 or less.

Wal-Mart claims prices for the OTC medications are now 50% lower than those of many other national chain drugstores. This is the third phase of the company's $4 prescription drug plan, which was launched in September 2006.

Other retailers, such as Kmart and Target, also are pricing various generic prescription drugs at $4.

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UCSF patient information left online

The UCSF Medical Center in San Francisco has acknowledged that information on about 6,000 patients was available online for three months last year, leaving those patients vulnerable to identity theft.

The leak was first reported May 1 by the San Francisco Chronicle. The newspaper, quoting unnamed UCSF officials, said the breach was discovered Oct. 9, and the information was closed off quickly. However, patients did not get notice until mid-April that there had been a breach, the newspaper reported.

The leak occurred as UCSF shared patient information with Target America Inc., which mines electronic databases for information about a nonprofit's potential or existing donors. UCSF said it broke off the relationship with the company 10 days after the leak was discovered. Target America would not comment, citing client confidentiality.

The medical center affiliated with the University of California, San Francisco, said there has been no indication of any identity theft related to the breach.

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