All six hospitals in the UVM Health Network have experienced a major tech outage that has made electronic patient records inaccessible, which has had a direct impact on patient care and appointments.
Officials are investigating whether the outage was caused by a malicious cyberattack. There is no timeline for restoring the system, according to Neal Goswami, a spokesperson for the UVM Health Network.
Reuters reported yesterday that the FBI is investigating more than two dozen ransomware attacks at hospitals around the country. An Eastern European group, known within the security industry as UNC-1878, is thought to be behind the cyberattacks, the business news organization says. Hospitals in Oregon, New York and California have been impacted.
“The outage has led to a variable impact on each affiliate as to how patient care is delivered,” Goswami said in a statement Tuesday night. The UVM Health Network has four affiliate hospitals in Vermont and two in New York.
The network is attempting to reach patients who have been impacted. “Our staff is following well-practiced standby procedures to ensure safe patient care,” Goswami said.
MyChart Patient Portal is down across the UVM Health Network.
At UVM Medical Center, elective procedures scheduled for today are being postponed until tomorrow.
Patients may experience delays at Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin and Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital in Plattsburgh, New York. UVM Home Health and Hospice, Porter Medical Center in Middlebury and Alice Hide Medical Center in Malone, New York, are “maintaining patient services.”
Editor’s note: This story will be updated.