The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently issued a special bulletin that warns of an increase in suspicious activity at hospitals.
DHS warns that impostors entering hospitals may be terrorists, and "U.S. hospitals offer easy public access and would be recognized by terrorist planners as easy, accessible targets. Known targeting of such facilities would instill great panic and fear in the general public."
The DHS bulletin outlines these incidents:
* In October 2004, two hospitals in the Phoenix metropolitan area reported suspicious activity, including photography, requests of building layout, inquiries regarding the location of the pharmacy, and computer fraud.
* Three men inquired as to the location of the pharmacy at St. Joseph's Hospital in Phoenix. These men previously had visited hospitals in Texas and Indiana. All three hospitals are distribution points for the antidote medicines for biological attacks.
* On Feb. 7, 2005, at approximately 10 a.m., two individuals who identified themselves as special agents representing the Department of Defense and the CIA entered the emergency department at Middletown Regional Hospital, NY. The subjects requested to see the charge nurse and presented identification badges. They asked the nurse a series of questions concerning capacity for cardiac care, trauma care, heliport, and private rooms. As the hospital staff's suspicion of the subjects increased, they left the building. The hospital staff did collect a business card from one of the subjects, and it appeared to be fraudulent.
Full Story @ RNweb
Scary - yes. Suprising - no. Quite frankly - and without trying to sound cynical - I assumed they would eventually take this route.
What needs to be done is for the Department of Defense to work with hospitals throughout the nation to set up somekind of process to where people can be imediantly identified through name AND a given photo ID. Sure, you can place phone calls and verify a name, but who's to say eventually they won't start someday soon stealing the names of individuals who do actually work for the DOD. That is, if they haven't already started that in some areas.
Posted by: mrs. muddy at July 27, 2005 12:24 AMReally simple, no one from the Department of Defense is going to go to a hospital just to get building layouts or ask to speak to the charge nurse. There's no reason for it. The charge nurse was damned smart to realize that fact.
Posted by: skywalker at July 27, 2005 08:24 AM"Really simple, no one from the Department of Defense is going to go to a hospital just to get building layouts..."
Yeah, that was actually my thought as well. I just thought I'd leave the door of opportunity open in some possible unique circumstance where the DOD *might* need that info.
In any given case, people are always playing on the safe side when they seek validation of anyone ID.
Posted by: mrs. muddy at July 27, 2005 09:59 AMIf anyone from the government wanted those plans, they'd contact the local government or law enforcement to get them. And they damn sure wouldn't waste time sending someone, they'd have them e-mailed or faxed.
Posted by: skywalker at July 27, 2005 07:13 PM