Despite state canceling contract with third-party vendor responsible for data breach of 72K health records, Phillips-Hill plans to advance bill to address data breaches in state government

HARRISBURG – The Senate Communications and Technology Committee, chaired by Senator Kristin Phillips-Hill (R-York), was notified today that the Department of Health would terminate its contract with the third-party vendor tasked with contact tracing Pennsylvanians effective June 19, 2021.

The committee scheduled a public hearing on the data breach on Tuesday, May 11, but officials from the Department of Health canceled their appearance on Friday, May 7 at 6 p.m. The committee still held a public hearing seeking transparency regarding major concerns surrounding the data breach that impacted over 72,000 Pennsylvanians and their personal health records. One question raised by Phillips-Hill sought to know why the department did not immediately terminate its contract with the third-party vendor.

“Taxpayers still have a lot of questions that remain unanswered, however, the committee will be taking action next week to address data breaches not only within state government, but any entity that contracts with the state,” Phillips-Hill said.

The committee will consider legislation on Monday, May 24 at 12:45 p.m. to address this issue. You can watch the committee meeting live and view the agenda here

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