To safeguard sensitive patient information, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) has established a number of criteria. The goal is to protect people’s healthcare information.
So, even while utilizing a texting app to connect with patients might be simple and useful, it’s crucial to make sure the app complies with HIPAA regulations.
We will cover every aspect of the HIPAA-compliant texting app in this article. We’ll also provide a list of some of the top HIPAA-compliant texting programmes that are feature-rich and put security first. Let’s begin!
What is HIPAA Compliance?
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 is referred to as HIPAA. For the lawful use and disclosure of protected health information, it is a set of regulatory standards (PHI).
It lays out the guidelines for safeguarding the confidentiality and integrity of patients. The ePHI or PHI that is sent, shared, saved, or received in an electronic format or media is also covered by this act.
The HIPAA regulations must be followed by all healthcare providers, including hospitals, clinics, and individual practitioners. In addition, any additional business colleagues, partners, or subcontractors may come into contact with PHI. These organizations are also covered by this law and must sign the HIPAA compliance Business Associate Agreement (BAA).
Is Texting HIPAA-Compliant?
Texting is typically not seen as HIPAA-compliant. The danger of security breaches and data theft is thereby increased by exchanging or transmitting SMS texts that contain PHI.
Despite being end-to-end encrypted, texting on conventional services like WhatsApp and iMessage is still not HIPAA-compliant. These platforms lack the safeguards and controls necessary to maintain the integrity of the patient data transmitted over them. The good news is that this issue can be resolved by HIPAA-certified text messaging programs.
Apps that support encrypted texting with patients are HIPAA-compliant. To ensure secure and hassle-free communication, these apps use HIPAA-compliant procedures. To do this, texting security measures like encryption and access limits are implemented.
There may be a number of correspondences between patients and medical staff or health insurance companies. For the highly regulated world of healthcare, mass texting can save time. Bulk SMS and SMS automation features that comply with HIPAA enable more efficient patient communications.
Who Needs to Follow HIPAA-Compliant Texting?
Healthcare insurance providers and health maintenance organizations are examples of covered entities under HIPAA privacy regulations.
The HIPAA regulations must also be followed by healthcare professionals who perform their operations online, such as doctors, nurses, therapists, clinics, and hospitals. Additionally included in the category of HIPAA-compliant entities are organizations that process patient health information obtained from one organization or another.