Stolen VA data goes beyond initial reports

The AP reports:

Personal information on 26.5 million veterans that was stolen from a Veterans Affairs employee this month not only included
Social Security numbers and birthdates but in many cases phone numbers and addresses, internal documents show.

The three pages of memos by the VA, written by privacy officer Mark Whitney and distributed to high-level officials shortly after the May 3 burglary, offer new details on the scope of one of the nation's largest security breaches. The memos were obtained Wednesday by The Associated Press.

They show that a file containing 6,744 records pertaining to "mustard gas veterans" — or those who participated in chemical testing programs during World War II — was breached, and that a "short file" with as many as 10 diagnostic codes indicating a veteran's disability also was stolen.

Do you look forward to national health care? Do you think the government will keep your personal information secure?