Hospitals Urged to Disconnect From UnitedHealth's Hacked Pharmacy Unit
WSJ
Pharmacies warned of long waits for customers and U.S. military clinics worldwide have been affected after a cyberattack against one of the country’s largest prescription processors rolled into a third day of downtime.
Health industry experts said that a cyberattack against Change Healthcare, part of insurer UnitedHealth Group’s Optum business, could have severe and lasting consequences should outages continue past the weekend.
“It’s a mess, and I believe it’s our Colonial Pipeline moment in healthcare,” said Carter Groome, chief executive of healthcare-focused consulting firm First Health Advisory, referring to a 2021 cyberattack that forced the major fuel artery for the U.S. East Coast to shut down for six days, causing long lines at gas stations.