By Marie Rosenthal, MS
The FBI announced it has not identified any specific credible threat targeted against hospitals in any U.S. city.
“Generally, foreign terrorist groups do not publicize their upcoming attacks,” the FBI said in a statement.
On March 18, 2025, the American Hospital Association (AHA) and Health-ISAC (Health Information Sharing and Analysis Center) issued a bulletin warning of a possible terrorist attack on U.S. healthcare facilities after they read a social media post related to the active planning of a coordinated, multicity terrorist attack on hospitals in the coming weeks. User @AXactual posted on X details related to the active planning of a coordinated, multicity terrorist attack on U.S. health sector organizations.
Although they were unable to confirm the threat, the two associations said they published the bulletin “out of an abundance of caution to spread awareness of the potential threat,” and also contacted the FBI, which investigated.
Regardless, violence in healthcare facilities appears to be increasing, according to several reports, so it is worth reviewing any protocols to deal with it. According to a 2023 study, most violence is verbal abuse (71.9%), but 28.1% were physical assaults. Doctors are more likely to be the victims (62.3%) followed by nurses at 20%, according to this study (PLoS One 2023 Jul 28;18(7):e0289363). Most cases occurred in outpatient clinics (34.8%) and emergency departments (25.9%). A little more than 37% were not prosecuted, the report said.
An American Nurses Association report puts the violence faced by nurses a little higher—one in four nurses face workplace violence, a rate higher than police and correctional officers, the ANA said.
“Workplace violence is a longstanding and unresolved issue in healthcare. It is a growing public health crisis that demands urgent attention. It worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic, overburdening an already strained healthcare system.” says Jennifer S. Mensik Kennedy, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, the president of the ANA. “One in three nurses lack the necessary safeguards to ensure their safety on the job, and one in every three nurses report personally experiencing workplace violence.”
And the Joint Commission revised its workplace violence prevention requirements for three accreditation programs (living communities, nursing care centers, and office-based surgery practices ) that become effective on July 1. They align with similar updates for behavioral health care and human services organizations, critical access hospitals, home care organizations, and hospitals.
“Workplace violence poses a significant occupational hazard for healthcare workers. However, the prevalence may be underestimated due to underreporting, as incidents are often perceived as minor,” the Joint Commission said.
The AHA and Health-ISAC recommended organizations review their physical security, cybersecurity and emergency management plans to ensure they can adequately respond to or prevent an attack. “Also, increasing relationships with local and federal law enforcement may streamline response efforts during an attack,” they suggested.
Remind staff and security teams to stay vigilant for any suspicious activity, as well as people or vehicles on organizational premises or in the vicinity of health sector facilities. Notify law enforcement with anything suspicious, they said. The AHA and Health-ISAC recommend that teams review their security and emergency management plans and heighten staff awareness of any threats.
“Standard vigilance should be maintained, including a visible security presence to deter any act of targeted violence on hospital premises,” the FBI said. “As always, suspicious or threatening activity should be reported to local law enforcement.”
