Dear Patients, Staff, Residents, Donors, and Community Partners:
Earlier this summer, Northwest Colorado Health was the victim of a sophisticated crime involving the impersonation of one of our financial institutions, resulting in a loss of approximately $230,000 from fraudulent transactions on our accounts. These types of crimes are becoming more common and, unfortunately, more refined. We are working closely with law enforcement and hope to recoup the stolen funds. We have recovered about $30,000 so far.
Importantly, no patient, resident, donor, or employee protected health information (PHI) or banking information was accessed or compromised. We are sharing this because transparency and accountability are fundamental to our mission and values.
The theft was limited solely to funds that are not related to donations, grant dollars, or community support. Although it is a substantial amount of money, our team has been able to continue providing all services at all locations without any negative impacts to our programs or operations. We have implemented additional safeguards and training to reinforce our financial controls and cybersecurity protections.
Northwest Colorado Health remains financially stable and fully operational. Our services to patients, residents, clients, and community members continue without interruption.
While we are limited in what we can share publicly because of the active law enforcement investigations, we believe it is important that our community hear directly from us. Immediately upon discovering the incident, we engaged our banking partners, legal counsel, insurance carriers, and law enforcement agencies, including the Steamboat Springs Police Department, Colorado Bureau of Investigation, and Federal Bureau of Investigation. The financial institution also notified its regulators. Investigations remain ongoing.
We remain committed to serving Northwest Colorado with the highest level of integrity, stewardship, and care. We are grateful for the trust you place in our organization and for the continued support of our patients, staff, residents, donors, and community partners.
Thank you for your understanding and continued confidence in Northwest Colorado Health.
Sincerely,
Steph Einfeld
Chief Executive Officer
Northwest Colorado Health