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Hacked to Pieces? The Effects of Ransomware Attacks on Hospitals and Patients

Hannah Neprash et al.

American Economic Journal: Economic Policy2026https://doi.org/10.1257/pol.20240594article
AJG 3ABDC A*
Weight
0.41

Abstract

As cybercriminals increasingly target health care, hospitals face the growing threat of ransomware attacks. Ransomware is a type of malicious software that prevents users from accessing electronic systems and demands a ransom to restore access. We create and link a database of hospital ransomware attacks to Medicare claims data. We quantify the effects of ransomware attacks on hospital operations and patient outcomes. Ransomware attacks decrease hospital volume by 17–24 percent during the initial attack week, with recovery occurring within 3 weeks. Among patients already admitted to the hospital when a ransomware attack begins, in-hospital mortality increases by 34–38 percent. (JEL D83, I12, I13, K42)

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https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1257/pol.20240594

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@article{hannah2026,
  title        = {{Hacked to Pieces? The Effects of Ransomware Attacks on Hospitals and Patients}},
  author       = {Hannah Neprash et al.},
  journal      = {American Economic Journal: Economic Policy},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1257/pol.20240594},
}

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Hacked to Pieces? The Effects of Ransomware Attacks on Hospitals and Patients

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Evidence weight

0.41

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.25 × 0.4 = 0.10
M · momentum0.55 × 0.15 = 0.08
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.