After 20 days, Appalachian Regional is back online

System contends PHI wasn’t compromised in cyber attack that incapacitated systems.


Appalachian Regional Healthcare has completed its recovery from a cyber attack a full 20 days after it was first discovered.

The efforts to achieve a recovery were difficult, the chain acknowledged. The timeline for resolution continued for 10 days after the 11-hospital delivery system first announced the breach and, at the time, suggested that it would be “back up to 100 percent very soon.”



“At this time, all AHR hospitals, home health, retail pharmacies and various clinics are back online,” the organization serving parts of eastern Kentucky and southern West Virginia said in a new statement issued late last week.

Also See: SCAN Health Plan notifies 87,000 after cyber attack

As it resolved the crisis, Appalachian Regional said it has no reason to believe that protected health information or financial information was accessed, and it thanked communities it serves for their patience. The delivery system is the largest employer in both regions.

For much of the downtime, registration, medication, imaging and lab services were being handled manually, and patients were asked to bring medications and medical history when coming to the hospital or seeing a physician.

The attack continues to be investigated, and authorities have asked Appalachian Regional to not discuss specifics of the incident.

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