Change Healthcare Cyber Incident
Change Healthcare (Change), a part of Optum and UnitedHealth Group, experienced a cyberattack on February 21. Change provides various technology services across the healthcare industry.
At this time, there have been no reported or observed impacts to Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (Blue KC) systems related to this event. We have taken steps to secure our systems and continuously monitor for suspicious activity. We also have taken precautionary measures to disconnect local systems from Change. Our systems and security teams remain on alert and are monitoring the environment 24/7. We are also closely monitoring additional information from Change Healthcare.
Provider impact
On February 29, we emailed providers in case they were having difficulties submitting claims to us due to the Change incident. If providers were experiencing issues, we encouraged them to reach out to our clearinghouse, Administrative Services of Kansas (ASK), to explore two different options that would help them submit claims electronically.
We have encouraged providers who need assistance related to this incident to log in to Blue KC’s Provider Portal.
Member impact
Blue KC members continue to have access to care. However, Amwell – our virtual urgent care and virtual behavioral healthcare vendor – has experienced some issues related to the Change incident. Due to the incident, Amwell is currently unable to verify member eligibility. Until the incident is resolved, Amwell agreed, at Blue KC’s request, to not charge Blue KC members up front for care as of March 1. Once the incident is resolved, Amwell will re-run eligibility and members could be billed at that time if their benefits require a copay.
If members need assistance, they should call the customer service number on the back of their member ID card. Blue KC remains vigilant so we can continue to serve our members’ healthcare needs.
We will continue to share updates as we learn more. In the meantime, if you have questions, please contact your Blue KC representative.
