416 LSU patients notified of possible ID theft

The LSU hospital system has notified 416 patients that their checking account numbers and other personal information on checks paid to hospitals have been stolen. The LSU Health Care Services Division began notifying patients in November, after learning about the identity thefts from state police, spokesman Marvin McGraw tells The Associated Press in an email. The division announced earlier today it was investigating a HIPAA violation regarding a possible check fraud case committed by a former employee, but provided few other details. The police are also investigating the case. Sheila Seal, an employee at the LSU hospital in Bogalusa, and her husband, Washington Parish Sheriff Randy Seal, say counterfeit checks totaling $2,500 were written on their account. Capt. Tommie Sorrell tells The Daily News of Bogalusa that $25,000 was taken from 19 people in Washington Parish. Patients’ bank account numbers and other information on the checks scanned into hospital system records were used to make counterfeit checks and ID cards, says Trooper Jared Sandifer, a Louisiana State Police spokesman. People notified by LSU should check their credit history and review this year’s bank statements for unauthorized checks, reporting any they find to their banks and to LSU at 1-800-735-1185. Former billing department employee Pamela Reams was booked in November with 377 counts of identity theft and is free on $60,000 bond. Seven people were booked with identity theft. Some were released without bond; bonds for others ranged from $5,000 to $26,000. Read the full story here.