Evidence is mounting that cyberattacks aimed at hospitals hurt not only those institutions but are harmful to patients who need their care.

One recent study found that hospitals may take up to 16 percent fewer patients in the aftermath of a cyberattack. During such episodes, hospitals have been known to cancel elective surgeries, lose access to electronic health records, and avoid use of costly imaging equipment. As a result, they may steer patients elsewhere, according to researchers.

Criminals have targeted many hospitals with ransomware, in which they take over computer networks and then demand money to free them. U.S. health care institutions, including hospitals and clinics, reported more than 370 such attacks from 2016 and 2021.

In May, the St. Louis-based Ascension network of 140 hospitals in 19 states disclosed that a cyberattack had disrupted an array of patient services including “various systems utilized to order certain tests, procedures and medications.”

Hospitals are continuing to struggle with these computer attacks, which as noted by Politico, “have become a growing concern for health system leaders and policymakers because of the threat they pose to patient care.”