HHS OCR report · 2016
Vascular Surgical Associates data breach
OCR report facts
- Covered entity
- Vascular Surgical Associates
- Entity type
- Healthcare Provider
- State
- Georgia
- Individuals affected
- 36,496
- Submission date
- Nov 10, 2016
- Type of breach
- Hacking/IT Incident
- Location of breached information
- Network Server
- Business associate present
- No
- Status
- Archive (closed)
OCR description
The covered entity (CE), Vascular Surgical Associates, discovered that on September 13, 2016, it had experienced a distributed denial of services attack. Upon investigation, it was determined that unauthorized third parties were able to gain access into the CE’s computer server through an administrative account set up by its electronic health records (EHR) system vendor and to enter the server and obtain PHI undetected after installing software to prevent the CE from seeing the activity. Th...
Text as published on the HHS OCR breach portal.
Frequently asked questions
How many people were affected by the Vascular Surgical Associates data breach?
The report to HHS OCR lists 36,496 individuals affected.
When was it reported to HHS?
It was submitted to HHS OCR on Nov 10, 2016.
What type of breach was it?
The OCR portal lists the type of breach as Hacking/IT Incident, with the breached information located in: Network Server.
Is the investigation still open?
No. The report is in the OCR portal archive, which holds reports where OCR has closed its review.
Is a breach notice letter from Vascular Surgical Associates legitimate?
This site cannot verify letters. Check the sender against the organisation's official website and the HHS OCR breach portal, and avoid calling numbers or clicking links only listed in an unexpected message. See our guide on what to do after a data breach notice.
Source: HHS OCR Breach Portal, OCR export October 2026. Network USA is not affiliated with HHS or Vascular Surgical Associates.