Orlando Ransomware Attack Causes Critical Blood Shortage At Florida Hospitals.

A hack targeting one of the top blood suppliers in the state has put Florida hospitals on the brink of a critical blood shortage.

A cyberattack on the nonprofit blood donation center OneBlood, which is based in Orlando, is stifling operations at an organization that normally services more than 350 hospitals across four states, the organization announced on Wednesday.

The breach, which was first reported by CNN, targeted OneBlood's software system and is being investigated as a ransomware event — where hackers break into a company's online network and essentially block access to important files until a ransom is paid.

Florida hospitals have had to cancel optional surgical procedures to help maintain their future blood supply after a cyberattack.

Baptist Health South Florida said it has “sufficient blood supplies to support our hospitalized patients’ needs” but is in the process of rescheduling elective and nonemergency surgeries that might require blood products in “an abundance of caution” until the issue is resolved.

Orlando Health also issued a statement saying it was working with OneBlood to “manage the situation so our patients may continue to receive essential blood products.”

“We have implemented manual processes and procedures to remain operational,” OneBlood Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications and Public Relations Susan Forbes said in a prepared statement.

“Manual processes take significantly longer to perform and impacts inventory availability. In an effort to further manage the blood supply we have asked the hospitals we serve to activate their critical blood shortage protocols and to remain in that status for the time being.”

Florida Hospital Association President and CEO Mary Mayhew said OneBlood supplies product to between 80% and 90% of the hospitals in the state, and that the facilities started feeling the effects of the attack Monday.

OneBlood is working with cybersecurity specialists as well as federal, state and local agencies to determine the scope of the attack and how to respond, officials said.

Healthcare hacks are on the rise, setting a new record last year in the country, according to USA Today. Most recently, Florida’s Department of Health experienced a breach that caused death certificate delays and led to thousands of records, including HIV test results, detailed doctors notes and immunization and virus testing records ending up on the dark web.

Critical Blood Shortage.Photo byGetty Images