NKC Health Data Breach Exposes Sensitive Personal & Health Data

North Kansas City Hospital, operating as NKC Health, has announced a significant data breach involving patient information stored by its electronic medical record vendor, Cerner. According to a detailed notice posted by NKC Health, an unauthorized third party gained access to Cerner’s systems as early as Jan. 22, 2025, and obtained data belonging to NKC Health patients.

The breach exposed a range of sensitive information. The data potentially accessed includes personally identifiable information (PII) such as names and dates of birth, as well as protected health information (PHI) including Cerner patient identifiers, medical record numbers, doctors, diagnoses, medicines, test results, images and details of care and treatment.

The full scope of affected individuals has not been specified, but the breach is considered serious due to the nature of the information involved. NKC Health has begun notifying affecting individuals.

NKC Health's response

Upon learning of the incident, NKC Health immediately began requesting information from Cerner regarding the breach. Cerner responded by initiating its critical incident response process, securing the affected systems and engaging external cybersecurity specialists to investigate the breach. Cerner also worked closely with federal law enforcement throughout the process.

If you receive notification from NKC Health or your provider about this breach, you may want to:

• Sign up for the free identity theft protection services, if offered by NKC Health.
• Monitor your credit reports and financial accounts for any unusual activity.
• Be alert for phishing emails or phone calls that may use your exposed information.
• Consider placing a fraud alert or credit freeze with major credit bureaus.

NKC Health has provided a dedicated toll-free assistance line at 1-833-990-3687, available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET, to answer questions from those who may be affected. Individuals may also write to NKC Health at 2800 Clay Edwards Drive, Kansas City, MO 64116.