Health Data Breaches Reported to HHS, 12 Months

## What this measures

Breaches of health records affecting 500 or more people reported to the HHS Office for Civil Rights over the trailing 12 months, all causes (hacking, theft, loss, unauthorized access, improper disposal).

## Why it matters

It answers directly whether serious data breaches in U.S. health care are becoming more common.

## How to read it

It was 800 in the 12 months to July 2026, up from 764 a year earlier, 443 in mid-2019 and 276 in mid-2016. Its record is 833 (April 2024).

## What it does not say

It covers health care only. Since 2015 hacking has driven almost all of the growth; see cyber.hhs.hacking_breaches_12m.

## Source

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights, Breach Portal (ocrportal.hhs.gov/ocr/breach), HIPAA breach reports, Under Investigation and Archive tabs combined, by breach submission date. Palanor reads both CSV exports every day. U.S. government work, public domain.