by Guy Page – Below are 10 takeaways the press statement and other information available today at 2:30 pm by the University of Vermont Medical Center about last week’s “cyberattack event.”

1. The hospital IT team has blocked incoming email to the hospital.
2. There is no access to the MyChart patient portal.
3. The IT team is “making steady progress toward restoring systems” but doesn’t know when computer access to patient records will be restored.
4. At UVMMC, outpatient radiology appointments are canceled.
5. Patients receiving cancer care should contact provider by phone before going in to appointments.
6. The hospital is open for emergency care.
7. Some non-urgent elective procedures have been rescheduled.
8. Outpatient visits are proceeding as scheduled.
9. Labs are open but can only take urgent collections for patients with paper orders. Lab results will be communicated by phone to the provider.
10. The FBI is investigating. All media requests about the investigation are being directed to an FBI Public Affairs Specialist. On the day of the attack, it issued a national alert warning against “ransomware” attacks on U.S. hospitals. It has not be stated whether ransomware was employed in the UVMMC cyberattack.

81% of ransomware attacks enter via email, according to IT security expert “The ITCo.” According to the October 28 Washington Post, ransom demands for last week’s attacks are as high as $1 million per hospital nationwide, and some hospitals have paid.