SearchAmerica® Launches Data Breach Advance Response™ to Address Rising Number of Medical Data Breaches

MINNEAPOLIS, Aug. 30 /PRNewswire/ -- SearchAmerica®, a part of Experian® and a leader in financial clearing services for health care, today launched its newest service offering for hospitals, Data Breach Advance Response™. The new service helps hospitals by providing a data breach preparedness plan so they can respond quickly and efficiently should a breach occur.

According to the Identity Theft Resource Center, there were nearly 120 medical/health care data breaches to date in 2010. More data breaches are expected to occur throughout 2010, with nearly 30 percent of all breaches currently occurring in the medical/health care space. (1)

Government regulations such as HITECH and HIPAA require health care companies to follow strict new privacy and security practices. Hospitals that fail to comply with these regulations face penalties of up to $1.5 million. With Data Breach Advance Response, when hospitals take action to comply with the federal and state notification requirements to its patients in the event of a breach, they also can provide proven identity theft protection to those impacted.

"Hospitals realize that they must ready themselves for a medical data breach, as the chances of its unfortunate occurrence are growing," said Dan Johnson, president of SearchAmerica, a part of Experian. "When a data breach occurs, health care networks need to react quickly to protect their patients and their reputation. Data Breach Advance Response combines SearchAmerica and Experian's industry expertise to provide hospitals and their patients with the tools they need to protect their medical information."

Data Breach Advance Response equips hospitals with the tools needed to manage a data breach, including:

• Proven, industry-leading data breach resolution products and services
• Data breach resolution program in place for immediate implementation
• Preferential pricing for ProtectMyID™, one of the industry's leading identity theft protection products
• Enhanced data breach resolution support features, including call center support and consumer notification services
• Data breach educational support and research

With no installation needed, enrollment in Data Breach Advance Response is completed quickly and easily. For more information on SearchAmerica's data breach resolution services for health care, email [email protected] or call 1 763 416 1000.

About SearchAmerica, Inc.

SearchAmerica, a part of Experian, leads the industry in financially clearing patients using address verification, prediction of payment and automated screening for financial assistance with its Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) services. The company provides a complete range of products that are used by more hospitals nationwide than other financial clearing solutions. SearchAmerica's quality and accuracy are best-in-class, and health care providers benefit from smarter data, which produces a healthier bottom line. Documented case studies prove a significant return on investment, consistent with favorable public relations. For additional information, please contact SearchAmerica at 1 763 416 1000 or visit http://www.searchamerica.com.

About Experian

Experian is the leading global information services company, providing data and analytical tools to clients in more than 90 countries. The company helps businesses to manage credit risk, prevent fraud, target marketing offers and automate decision making. Experian also helps individuals to check their credit report and credit score and protect against identity theft.

Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Total revenue for the year ended March 31, 2010, was $3.9 billion. Experian employs approximately 15,000 people in 40 countries and has its corporate headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, with operational headquarters in Nottingham, UK; Costa Mesa, California; and São Paulo, Brazil.

For more information, visit http://www.experianplc.com.

Experian and the Experian marks used herein are service marks or registered trademarks of Experian Information Solutions, Inc. Other product and company names mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners.

(1) Identity Theft Resource Center 2010 Data Breach Report, as of Aug. 4, 2010

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Dan Buell

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SOURCE Experian