UCLA pays $865K for privacy violations

LOS ANGELES, July 7 (UPI) -- The UCLA Health System agreed to pay $865,500 to settle a case with U.S. regulators after hospital employees illegally reviewed celebrity medical records.

Over a period from 2005 to 2009, eventually terminated hospital employees illegally accessed the files of dozens of celebrities, including Britney Spears, Farrah Fawcett and former California first lady Maria Shriver, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Investigators determined UCLA employees accessed private records "repeatedly and without a permissible reason," the agreement states.

The chronic violations prompted state lawmakers to impose higher fines on hospitals that violate patient privacy.

"Over the past three years, we have worked diligently to strengthen our staff training, implement enhanced data security systems and increase our auditing capabilities," the UCLA Health System said in a statement Thursday.

"Our patients' health, privacy and well-being are of paramount importance to us," Dr. David T. Feinberg, chief executive of the UCLA Health System, told the Times. "We appreciate the involvement and recommendations made by [the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Office for Civil Rights] in this matter and will fully comply with the plan of correction it has formulated. We remain vigilant and proactive to ensure that our patients' rights continue to be protected at all times."