ROCKVILLE, Md., Nov. 25, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — US Fertility (“USF”) is providing notice of a recent incident that may affect the security of certain individuals’ protected health information. USF provides IT platforms and services to several infertility clinics, including Georgia Reproductive Specialists, LLC d/b/a SGF Atlanta, Center for Reproductive Endocrinology, Center for Reproductive Medicine & Advanced Reproductive Technologies, Center for Reproductive Medicine Alabama, Center for Reproductive Medicine Orlando, Coastal Fertility Specialists, Fertility Centers of Illinois, LLC, Fertility Partners of Pennsylvania Surgery Center, LLC, Idaho Center for Reproductive Medicine, Nevada Center for Reproductive Medicine, Nevada Fertility Center, New York Fertility Medical Practice, PLLC d/b/a SGF New York, Northwest Center for Infertility and Reproductive Endocrinology, LLP d/b/a IVF Florida Reproductive Associates, Reproductive Endocrinology Associates of Charlotte, Reproductive Partners Fertility Center – San Diego, Reproductive Partners Medical Group, Inc., Reproductive Science Center of the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle Reproductive Medicine, SGF Tampa Bay, LLC, Shady Grove Fertility Center of Pennsylvania, PLLC, Shady Grove Reproductive Science Center, P.C., Sher Institute of Reproductive Medicine New York, Sher Institute of Reproductive Medicine St. Louis, UNC Fertility, Utah Fertility Center, Virginia Fertility Associates, LLC d/b/a SGF Richmond, and Virginia IVF and Andrology Center, LLC.

“We take this incident very seriously and are committed to protecting the security and confidentiality of health information we gather in providing services to individuals,” said Mark Segal, Chief Executive Officer of USF.

On September 14, 2020, USF experienced an IT security event (the “Incident”) that involved the inaccessibility of certain computer systems on our network as a result of a malware infection. We responded to the Incident immediately and retained third-party computer forensic specialists to assist in our investigation. Through our immediate investigation and response, we determined that data on a number of servers and workstations connected to our domain had been encrypted by ransomware. We proactively removed a number of systems from our network upon discovering the Incident. With the assistance of our third-party computer forensic specialists, we remediated the malware identified, ensured the security of our environment, and reconnected systems on September 20, 2020. We also notified federal law enforcement authorities of the Incident and continue to cooperate with their investigation. The forensic investigation is now concluded and confirmed that the unauthorized actor acquired a limited number of files during the period of unauthorized access, which occurred between August 12, 2020 and September 14, 2020, when the ransomware was executed.

We have been working diligently with a specialized team of third-party data auditors to perform a comprehensive review of all information contained in the files accessed without authorization as a result of the Incident. The purpose of this review was to accurately identify any individuals whose personal information may have been present within the impacted files and therefore accessible to the unauthorized actor.

On November 13, 2020, we began receiving the results of this review and determined that the following information relating to certain individuals was included in the impacted files when they were accessed without authorization: names, addresses, dates of birth, MPI numbers, and Social Security numbers. The types of information impacted vary by individual, and we determined that for many individuals, Social Security numbers were not impacted. Please also note that we have no evidence of actual misuse of any individual’s information as a result of the Incident.

In response to the Incident, USF has taken the following actions to mitigate any risk of compromise to information involved and to better prevent a similar event from recurring: (1) fortified the security of our firewall; (2) utilized the forensic specialists engaged to monitor network activity and remediate any suspicious activity; (3) provided notification to potentially impacted individuals as quickly as possible. We are also adapting our existing employee training protocols relating to data protection and security, including training targeted at recognizing phishing emails. We believe these steps will be effective in mitigating any potential harm to individuals. As always, we encourage individuals to review account statements, explanations of benefits, and credit reports carefully for unexpected activity and to report any questionable activity to the associated institutions immediately.

We sincerely apologize that this Incident occurred and remain committed to safeguarding the privacy and security of the information entrusted to us. We have established a dedicated call center for individuals to contact with questions or concerns. If you have any questions regarding this Incident that are not addressed in this notice, please contact our assistance line, which can be reached at 855-914-4699 (toll free), Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm EST, excluding U.S. holidays.

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New US research has found that going to bed late at night and not keeping a regular sleep schedule appears to be associated with a greater risk of obesity in teenage girls.

Led by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital for Children (MGHfC) and Harvard Medical School, the new study looked at 418 girls and 386 boys aged 12 to 17 and asked them to wear a wrist actigraph — which records periods of rest and activity — for five days or more.  

The researchers used the data to examine each participant’s chronotype, which is their preference for staying up late in the evening versus getting up early in the morning, and “social jet lag,” which is the difference in sleep timing between school and free days.

The participants were also asked to complete questionnaires, and researchers recorded their anthropometric measurements, which are measurements of the muscle, bone, and adipose tissue used to assess the composition of the body.

The findings, published in JAMA Pediatrics, showed that an evening chronotype and greater social jet lag were associated with a greater likelihood of being overweight in girls, but not in boys.

For the girls, staying up later was associated with an average .58 cm increase in waist size and a .16 kg/m2 increase in body fat, and each hour of social jet lag was associated with a 1.19 cm larger waist size and a 0.45 kg/m2 increase in body fat.

The findings also held true even after taking into account sleep duration and other lifestyle behaviors.

“Beyond quantity and quality, timing is a vital component of sleep because it determines if an individual’s circadian clock — the internal sleep/wake schedule — is synchronized with the rhythms of their daily activities,” said Elsie Taveras, MD, MPH, senior investigator. “This is particularly important to adolescents whose evening preferences and academic demands often result in irregular sleep schedules that may cause circadian misalignment.”

The researchers say the findings emphasize the need for teens to keep a consistent sleep-wake patterns throughout the week, including on weekends.

“Large variability in sleep patterns across the week can disrupt normal physiology, resulting in obesity and cardiometabolic risk,” explained lead author Elizabeth Cespedes Feliciano, ScD, ScM. “Our study supports the importance of biological clocks in influencing obesity risk.”

“Families should encourage consistency in their children’s sleep schedules and their bed and wake times as well as improvements in their sleep hygiene by limiting electronic media and caffeine use in the evening,” said Feliciano.

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The US has now reached a stage wherein it can eradicate AIDS from the country in a decade, President Donald Trump has said.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar told cabinet colleagues on Tuesday that the administration had entered into a tie up with Gilead, an American biotechnology company that focuses primarily on antiviral drugs used in the treatment of HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C and influenza.

“The President secured a historic deal to get 200,000 courses of treatment per year for the next 11 years of free drug for our program to be able to treat people that keeps them from being able to get HIV, even if they have at-risk behaviours” Azar said.

The deal is worth billions of dollars, which Gilead has promised to contribute over the next decade.

“We’re really at a point where we can eradicate AIDS from the United States within 10 years,” Trump said.

The United States has had 40,000 new cases of HIV every year in this country. It now has the tools to keep people from getting infected and to treat those who are infected.

Gilead is the company that invented the drug PrEP, which is the medicine that if a patient takes it regularly, as prescribed, they reduce by 97 per cent the chances that they can contract HIV/AIDS.

“We have patent issues between us and Gilead. Without sacrificing any of the rights that we have, we were able to secure a donation by Gilead of 200,000 courses of treatment per year of PrEP, for use in our ending the HIV/AIDS epidemic program — of PrEP or any successor product developed — up until 2030,” Azar said.

Terming it a “historic” agreement, Azar said the US has a chance to stop HIV within 10 years from being an “epidemic” in this country.

“It is going to be one of President Trump’s great legacies for history, is the eradication of HIV as an epidemic here in the United States,” he added.

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