health

The City Council has taken the first step toward granting an emergency funding request from Unalaska’s clinic.

On Tuesday, councilors reviewed a proposal to allocate $500,000 for Iliuliuk Family and Health Services (IFHS).

Interim City Manager Nancy Peterson said the ordinance would establish a reserve from the city’s general fund.

The island's health care provider would be required to prove its financial need every time it taps into that reserve.

Facing dismal finances, Unalaska’s clinic is asking the city for $700,000 in emergency funding.

James Kaech -- executive director of Iliuliuk Family and Health Services -- made the request at last week’s meeting of the Unalaska City Council.

“We’re nonprofit," Kaech told the council. "We don’t want to make any money, but we need enough to keep the clinic going.”

He said the clinic has suffered annual budget shortfalls for most of the last decade.

Unalaska’s clinic is investigating a security breach of its computer system.

The ransomware attack happened in August, according to James Kaech, executive director of Iliuliuk Family and Health Services.

He said the clinic’s access to its computer system was temporarily blocked, but it seems no information was stolen.

“Currently, it doesn’t look like there was any HIPAA breach," said Kaech. "It was just a system breach.”