It appears that thousands of NFL players’ health records might be in the wrong hands after the car of a Washington Redskins’ trainer was broken into.
According to Deadspin, the break-in occurred in late April. Inside the car was the trainer’s backpack, which included electronic and paper records of thousands of NFL players. Specifically, the backpack contained the health records of all the NFL combine attendees from the past 13 years. The league and the NFL Players’ Association have since addressed the potential breach of privacy.
Deadspin was able to get access to a letter that was sent by NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith on May 27. The letter outlines what was in the stolen backpack and addresses what the league is doing to handle the situation.
“The NFLPA has consulted with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regarding this matter,” the letter stated. “The NFLPA also continues to be briefed by the NFL on how they intend to deal with both the breach by a club employee, the violation of NFL and NFLPA rules regarding the storage of personal data, and what the NFL intends to do with respect to notifying those who may be affected.”
As of now, it’s unclear whether whoever stole the backpack will be able to get access to the electronic records. The laptop that held the records was unencrypted, but it was password-protected.
According to Deadspin’s report, the NFL storing health records on an unencrypted computer would likely by a violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA). However, it’s likely that neither the Redskins nor the NFL as a whole will be held liable by the Department of Health and Human Services. Rather, the cases would be looked at on a state-by-state basis.
This is the second time in the past year that the NFL has run into issues with HIPPA. Two employees of a Miami hospital were fired after unlawfully accessing Jason Pierre-Paul’s medical records following a fireworks accident in July.
It’s just another day in the NFL’s 365-day news cycle.
