Need help?
Anthem has created a website,www.anthemfacts.com, where members can access information, about the breach. There is also a dedicated toll-free number that both current and former members can call if they have questions related to the cyberattack. Call 877-263-7995.
In this July 12, 2014 photo, Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., takes part in a discussion at the National Governors Association convention in Nashville, Tenn. Early voting is getting underway for Tennessee's primary election that features tea party-styled challenges to Alexander's bid for the Republican nomination to a third term in the U.S. Senate. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey) Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander on Wednesday sharply criticized leaders of health insurer Anthem, decrying the company's delayed response to a cyberattack that affects 770,000 Tennesseans -- many of whom may still be unaware their data has been compromised, a report to his Senate committee has revealed.
More than a month after a "highly sophisticated" cyberattack on Anthem was revealed Feb. 4, the majority of the 80 million people affected nationwide have yet to be notified that personal data like Social Security numbers, birth dates and employer information may have been compromised, said Alexander. He is chairman of the Senate's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which has investigated the breach.
"This delay is unacceptable and should be corrected immediately," Alexander said in a statement Wednesday.
Alexander and U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., wrote to Anthem CEO Joseph Swedish that they were "concerned with your slow pace of notification and outreach thus far," and demanded a plan of action by April 1 that will "dramatically increase the pace of notification."
Anthem operates insurance companies in 14 states. That includes Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia but not BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee. However, Anthem manages thousands of Medicaid programs in Tennessee through its subsidiary, Amerigroup.
About 246,000 TennCare members on Amerigroup, including children, were affected by the data breach, state officials said.
Anthem's lagging notification system "is of particular concern given that many of the individuals whose information has been compromised are not Anthem customers and may still be unaware that their information was contained in the attacked database," the senators' letter said.
TennCare spokeswoman Kelly Gunderson has said those members will be notified the week of March 25, when they will begin receiving letters from Amerigroup.
More than half a million other Tennesseans insured by Anthem through out-of-state companies were affected by the breach, Anthem's own analysis showed in its report to the Senate committee.
In Georgia, 3.4 million Blue Cross members were affected by the Anthem breach, the state's insurance commissioner has said.
Tony Felts, regional spokesman for Anthem's Blue Cross Blue Shield Georgia subsidiary, said the company "took quick action" to secure systems and notify those affected shortly after the attack was discovered.
Within four business days, he said, the company established a website about the breach, emailed thousands of members and started making credit protection available.
While Anthem is offering 24 months of free identity theft repair and credit monitoring services to breach victims, Alexander and Murray wrote that they "find it alarming that so many Americans remain unaware of their situation and unable to benefit from these options."
Felts said Wednesday the company has accelerated its member notification mailings, and that 2.4 million letters are mailed directly daily.
"We are working continuously to complete that process as soon as possible," he said.
Contact staff writer Kate Belz at kbelz@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6673.