PA health system reports 144 - patient data , identity theft In what s turned out to be a multi - layered case , 144 patients of Community Hospital in Chester and Crozer - Chester Medical Center in Upland , PA had their names , dates of birth and Social Security numbers stolen in an IRS tax fraud sting from January 2008 to September 2011 . Rafael Henriquez Polanco , 30 , and wife , Yanira Lopez , 27 , according to delcotimes.com , allegedly filed fraudulent tax returns with fake W2 forms , sought $ 1.7 million in refunds and ended up with $ 257,710 in return money from the U.S. Department of the Treasury . The couple had paid hospital employees to steal confidential medical forms and from there they would use those forms to steal patient identities . The couple is facing charges ranging from conspiracy to defraud the government , aggravated identity theft , passport fraud and presentation of an immigration application containing a false statement . The report also says that Lopez was charged with wire fraud and is looking at 52 years in prison if convicted while Polanco faces 32 years in jail if convicted . The U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service , the Department of Labor , IRS Criminal Investigations , and Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations handled the case and charges . But one has to wonder whether the Department of Health and Human Services ( HHS ) plans on getting involved in the case to see if Crozer could have prevented the patient data theft . Polanco and Lopez were Crozer Keystone Health System and , according to philly.com , Crozer spokesman Grant Gegwich said two employees , non - professional employees of the hospital employees , have been terminated for their involvement . While there were no other details , Gegwich said procedures for handling and disposal of documents containing patient information have been modified . Considering that Gegwich said the hospitals were notified of the information theft in October 2011 , will those modifications be sufficient if HHS or the Office for Civil Rights ( OCR ) comes knocking ? ;