What is a Secure Email Gateway?

HIPAA Compliant Email, Popular Posts
Pete Wermter
April 2, 2025

Email communication is indispensable in today’s fast-paced, digitally-driven healthcare world. Unfortunately, for healthcare organizations, cyber criminals are aware of this too, which is why email-based cyber threats, such as unauthorized access, PHI exposure, phishing and ransomware, remain as prevalent as ever. A Secure Email Gateway can help, providing a security solution that sits between an organization’s email server and the outside world to monitor, filter, and control all incoming and outgoing email traffic.

As healthcare companies learn to recognize and mitigate email security threats, malicious actors grow more sophisticated, developing new ways of breaching organizations’ email security measures. In light of this, healthcare companies must find ways to better safeguard the electronic protected health information (ePHI) within their IT infrastructure, especially for email. Not only will this help maintain operational consistency, delivering high-quality and expedient service to their patients and customers, but it helps them comply with the regulatory guidelines mandated by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

A secure email gateway provides an excellent solution to the problem of an evolving email cyber threat landscape, without a healthcare company having to make significant changes to their IT infrastructure. So, with this in mind, this post explores the concept of secure email gateways, how they better safeguard sensitive patient data, and how they support HIPAA compliance efforts.

What Is a Secure Email Gateway?

A secure email gateway is a security tool that filters inbound and outbound email communications to mitigate a variety of email-based cyber threats, including phishing, malware (e.g., ransomware, viruses, etc), PHI exposure, and spam mail.

Effectively providing an additional security layer for your organization’s email accounts, a secure email gateway acts as a checkpoint between its email systems and the internet, enforcing your healthcare company’s security policies and ensuring HIPAA compliance.

How Do Secure Email Gateways Work?

A secure email gateway sits between a company’s email platform (e.g., Microsoft 365, Google Workspace) and external email traffic, scanning messages for potential malicious activity and security policy violations.

When sending an outbound email, the message is encrypted before being passed onto the recipient. This prevents the exposure of any ePHI contained in the email, in the event of its interception. Without the encryption key, the email is rendered unreadable by cyber criminals, ensuring data privacy and regulatory compliance. By the same token, depending on its nature, the secure email gateway may automatically archive the email to help satisfy compliance requirements for message retention – something that will be all the more important when the updated HIPAA Security Rule comes into effect in later 2025.

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Conversely, for incoming traffic, a secure email gateway utilizes filtering tools to identify and quarantine suspicious messages. By preventing potentially malicious messages from reaching employee inboxes, a gateway reduces instances of phishing, malware installation, credential compromise – and any email cyber threat that requires human error or negligence.

When Should You Opt For a Secure Email Gateway?

The key reason to opt for a secure email gateway solution is that you want to enhance your company’s email security without replacing your existing email infrastructure.

A key advantage offered by secure email gateways is that they’re easy to install, manage, and use. This keeps the administrative burden on a company’s IT and operations departments to a minimum while still achieving the key objectives of boosting email security and aiding compliance efforts.

More specifically, installing a secure email gateway can be an easy solution for healthcare care companies looking to quickly achieve HIPAA compliance for email. By simply sitting on top of a company’s existing email service, like Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, a secure email gateway can be easier for IT teams to install and maintain, especially for smaller companies and organizations. Additionally, employees won’t require additional training or have to make any adjustments: they can simply keep using their existing email accounts without interruption.

Enhance Your Email Security Posture With Luxsci’s Secure Email Gateway

LuxSci’s Secure Email Gateway can be easily integrated with Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, or your on-premise email client to better safeguard ePHI and ensure HIPAA compliance – with zero disruption to your current systems, employees, or your quality of service.

Using LuxSci’s proprietary SecureLine encryption technology, our Secure Email Gateway solution automatically encrypts every email, protecting sensitive patient data without the need for explicit employee intervention before sending the message.

Want to know more about how HIPAA compliant email will boost your security and compliance? Contact us to learn more and get started!

Pete Wermter

As a marketing leader with more than 20 years of experience in enterprise software marketing, Pete's career includes a mix of corporate and field marketing roles, stretching from Silicon Valley to the EMEA and APAC regions, with a focus on data protection and optimizing engagement for regulated industries, such as healthcare and financial services. Pete Wermter — LinkedIn

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LuxSci and Oiva Health Combine to Form Transatlantic Healthcare Communications Group

February 12, 2026
Pete Wermter

Boston & Helsinki, February 12, 2026 – LuxSci, a provider of secure healthcare communications solutions in the United States, and Oiva Health, a Nordic provider of Digital Care solutions in social and healthcare services, today announced that the companies are joining forces. Backed by Main Capital Partners (“Main”), the combination brings together two complementary platforms and teams, forming a strong transatlantic software group focused on secure healthcare communications.

Founded in 1999, LuxSci is a U.S. provider of HIPAA‑compliant, secure email, marketing, and forms solutions. Its application and infrastructure software enable organizations to securely deliver personalized, sensitive data at scale to support a broad range of healthcare communications and workflows including care coordination, benefits and payments, marketing, wellness communications, after care and ongoing care. Certified by HITRUST for the highest levels of data security, LuxSci serves dozens of healthcare enterprises and hundreds of mid‑market organizations.

Founded in 2010, Oiva Health is a provider of digital care and communications solutions in the Nordics. Headquartered in Finland, with additional offices in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, Oiva Health offers digital care and digital clinic solutions – including digital visits, secure messaging, online scheduling and appointments, and caregiver communications – serving the long-term care, especially elderly care, and occupational healthcare verticals. The company employs approximately 60 people and has recently expanded across the Nordic region, with a growing presence in Norway and Sweden.

The combination of LuxSci and Oiva Health creates a larger, cross Atlantic group with complementary solutions, serving the U.S. and European markets. Together, the companies offer healthcare providers, payers, and suppliers a comprehensive suite of tools to communicate securely and compliantly, spanning communications, workflows, and virtual care delivery.

Daan Visscher, Partner and Co-Head North America at Main, commented: “We are pleased to announce this cross Atlantic transaction, creating an internationally active secure communications player within the healthcare and home care space. The combined product suite enables healthcare organizations to drive much needed efficiency gains in healthcare provision addressing a global trend of rising costs, aging population, and increasing pressure on resources needed to provide high-quality care.”

Mark Leonard, CEO of LuxSci, said, “We are thrilled to join forces with Oiva Health and believe that together we can truly make a difference in healthcare coordination, access, and delivery. We see an exciting path forward with our customers benefiting from an end-to-end, secure and compliant approach to optimizing both healthcare communications and today’s frontline workers, which we need now more than ever.”

Juhana Ojala, CEO at Oiva Health, concluded, “We look forward to this new chapter together with LuxSci. We are very excited about the strong alignment between our solutions, which especially strongly positions us to expand our flagship Digital Care offering to the high-potential U.S. care market – from care coordination to care delivery to in-home and institutional care.”

Nothing contained in this Press Release is intended to project, predict, guarantee, or forecast the future performance of any investment. This Press Release is for information purposes only and is not investment advice or an offer to buy or sell any securities or to invest in any funds or other investment vehicles managed by Main Capital Partners or any other person.

[END OF MESSAGE]

About LuxSci

LuxSci is a U.S.-based provider of secure healthcare communications solutions for the healthcare industry. The company offers secure email, marketing, forms and hosting, delivering HIPAA‑compliant communication solutions that enable organizations to safely manage and transmit sensitive data. Founded in 1999, LuxSci serves more than 1,900 customers across healthcare verticals, including providers, payers, suppliers, and healthcare retail, home care providers, and healthcare systems, as well as organizations operating in other highly regulated industries. LuxSci is HITRUST‑certified with example clients being Athenahealth, 1800 Contacts, Lucerna Health, Eurofins, and Rotech Healthcare, among others.

About Oiva Health

Oiva Health is a Digital Care provider in the Nordics, offering a comprehensive Digital Platform for integrated health and care services to digitalize primary healthcare, social care, hospital healthcare and long-term care services. The company was founded in 2010 and currently employs approximately 60 people in Finland, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden serving domestic municipalities, customers and partners, such as City of Helsinki, Keski-Suomi Welfare Region, Länsi-Uusimaa Welfare Region in Finland, and Viborg municipality in Denmark with its Digital Care platform. Annually over 5 million customer contacts are handled digitally through Oiva Health’s Digital Care and Digital Clinic platforms.

About Main Capital Partners

Main Capital Partners is a software investor managing private equity funds active in the Benelux, DACH, the Nordics, France, and the United States with approximately EUR 7 billion in assets under management. Main has over 20 years of experience in strengthening software companies and works closely with the management teams across its portfolio as a strategic partner to achieve profitable growth and create larger outstanding software groups. Main has approximately 95 employees operating out of its offices in The Hague, Düsseldorf, Stockholm, Antwerp, Paris, and an affiliate office in Boston. Main maintains an active portfolio of over 50 software companies. The underlying portfolio employs approximately 15,000 employees. Through its Main Social Institute, Main supports students with grants and scholarships to study IT and Computer Science at Technical Universities and Universities of Applied Sciences.

The sender of this press release is Main Capital Partners.

For more information, please contact:

Main Capital Partners
Sophia Hengelbrok (PR & Communications Specialist)

sophia.hengelbrok@main.nl

+ 31 6 53 70 76 86

Rethinking HIPAA Compliant Email – Not Just a Checkbox

January 20, 2026
Pete Wermter

The compliance-only mentality is outdated.

Let’s be honest—when most healthcare organizations think about HIPAA compliant email, it’s usually in the context of avoiding fines or satisfying checklists. And while yes, compliance is critical, viewing it only through the lens of risk management is a missed opportunity.

In reality, HIPAA compliant email, when implemented properly, is one of the most powerful tools for patient and customer engagement. Why? Because it unlocks the ability to leverage protected health information (PHI) safely, enabling personalized, timely, and high-impact email communication that drives better engagement, satisfaction, and outcomes.

What Makes Email Truly HIPAA Compliant?

As a reminder, HIPAA compliant email requires that protected health information (PHI) is safeguarded both in transit and at rest. That means your email provider must:

Use encryption at all times

Be access-controlled

Include audit logs

Be stored and transmitted in a secure manner

Provide a Business Associate Agreement

Regular email services just don’t cut it. In fact, most consumer or marketing email platforms like Sendgrid or Constant Contact, while great at sending email, are not HIPAA compliant or have limitations when it comes to using PHI in your messages. Even when bolted-on encryption solutions are used, they often lack the flexibility, scalability, and automation needed for safe and effective healthcare email engagement.

LuxSci goes beyond the basics with policy-based encryption, secure TLS, PKI encryption and escrow/secure portal options. LuxSci’s SecureLine™ encryption technology dynamically selects the appropriate encryption method based on recipient capabilities and messaging context and can be configured to enforce secure delivery automatically according to organizational policies. LuxSci also provides the ability to enforce advanced multi-factor authentication. Every message is tracked with full audit trails—no guesswork, no loose ends.

The Real Opportunity – Secure, Personalized Email with PHI

Using PHI to Drive Personalized Messaging
Imagine sending a personalized reminder to a diabetic patient about an upcoming check-up. Or reaching out to new mothers with postnatal care resources tailored to their needs. Or sending automated email workflows to all your members to accelerate and increase new plan enrollments. Or email customer and prospects about a new product upgrade or new service offering. The list goes on. That’s the power of PHI-personalized email—when done securely.

Targeted Segmentation with Sensitive Data
With HIPAA compliant email solutions like LuxSci, you can segment your audience based on real health data with high levels of precision, such as chronic conditions, appointment history, insurance status, health risks, and more, without compromising patient trust or security.

Breaking the One-Size-Fits-All Approach in Healthcare Email
Generic email blasts are over. Modern patients expect personalization. With LuxSci, you can deliver highly targeted, highly secure emails with encrypted content, while staying HIPAA compliant.

Real Business Results from Secure Email

Here’s how secure, personalized email can drive improved results across a range of healthcare communications, including:

Increased Patient Appointments and Follow-ups – Sending encrypted, personalized appointment reminders and follow-up notices can reduce no-shows and boost overall appointment volume.
Boosting Preventative Care with Outreach Campaigns – Preventative campaigns (think flu shots or cancer screenings) sent securely to the right segments can lead to higher response rates, better health outcomes, and a lower cost of care.
Improving Health Plan Enrollments – Targeted email outreach during open enrollment, tailored by eligibility or plan type, and powered by automated workflows leads to higher enrollments and lower call center costs.
Driving Awareness and Sales of New Services or Products – Have a product upgrade offer, new wellness program or telehealth service? Send secure, PHI-informed HIPAA compliant email to the right audience for increased sales and faster adoption.
Optimize Explanation of Benefits Notices – Replace snail mail with email that’s fast, reliable and trackable, ensuring customers are informed and compliance is met.

The Healthcare Marketer’s Secret Weapon: Using PHI Responsibly

In a world moving away from third-party cookies, first-party data is more valuable than ever, and PHI is the most powerful form of it in healthcare. With secure HIPAA compliant email, PHI doesn’t have to be locked away. Marketers can safely use it to understand patient needs and send relevant, timely messages. PHI-driven segmentation lets you build hyper-targeted campaigns that speak to relevant conditions, unique needs and timely topics, increasing open rates, clicks throughs, and campaign conversions.

Meeting the Personalization Demands of Today’s Patients and Customers

HIPAA-compliant email is no longer just about checking a box. It’s about unlocking the full potential of your patient and customer data to drive better engagement, healthier outcomes, and measurable business results.

In closing, below are some final thoughts on how secure, HIPAA compliant email delivers long-term value for your organization and better connections with your patients and customers, including:

- Future-Proofing Healthcare Engagement – Patients expect Amazon-level personalization. HIPAA-compliant tools let you meet those expectations securely.

- Adapting to Data Privacy Regulations Beyond HIPAA – From GDPR to state-level privacy laws, secure communication is no longer optional, it’s foundational.

- Building Trust Through Secure Communication – Each secure, personalized message sent is a trust-building moment with your patients and customers.

Why LuxSci? The Infrastructure Behind the Performance

With LuxSci’s secure email infrastructure and email marketing solutions, healthcare organizations can confidently personalize communication, reach patients more effectively, and fuel growth with PHI-safe segmentation, messaging, and email automation.

LuxSci takes data security and email performance to the next level by offering dedicated cloud infrastructure for each customer, which means your email campaigns aren’t slowed down by other vendors on shared cloud services and your attack footprint is much smaller. In short, you get higher delivery rates and throughput with proven HIPAA compliance and data security.

The future of healthcare engagement is personal, secure, and performance-driven—and it starts with HIPAA compliant email done right.

Reach out today with any questions or to learn more about LuxSci.

FAQs

1. Is HIPAA-compliant email necessary for marketing communications?
Yes—if your emails include or are based on PHI (like appointment reminders, condition-based messaging, or insurance info), you need HIPAA-compliant email and recipient consent to avoid legal risk and preserve patient trust.

2. Can PHI be used in marketing emails under HIPAA?
Yes, with proper consent and secure, HIPAA compliant infrastructure like LuxSci’s, PHI can be safely used in emails for personalized, segmented campaigns.

3. How does LuxSci ensure high email deliverability for healthcare messages?
LuxSci uses dedicated cloud servers for each customer, active email reputation monitoring, and best-practice configurations to ensure high deliverability rates for sensitive emails.

4. Is LuxSci only for marketing teams?
No—LuxSci supports marketing, clinical, operations, and IT teams by enabling secure, compliant email communication across the entire organization.

5. What types of PHI can I use to segment campaigns using LuxSci?
You can segment based on chronic conditions, visit history, insurance status, provider details, age, gender, location, and more—all while staying fully compliant.

Most Popular LuxSci Blog Posts of 2025

December 30, 2025
Pete Wermter

As we close out 2025, healthcare communicators, IT and compliance leaders, and digital marketers face an ever-changing landscape of security threats, regulatory updates, and technology innovations. At LuxSci, we’re committed to helping you with continuous updates and guidance on the future of secure healthcare communications.

In case you missed it, or need a refresh, below are some of our most popular blog posts from 2025. Enjoy!

1. Improve Email Engagement and Marketing Results with Automated Workflows

Automated workflows are transforming how healthcare organizations engage patients and customers — enabling dynamic, event-driven campaigns that easily scale your outreach and keep you HIPAA compliant. In this post, we introduce LuxSci’s Automated Workflows capability for our Secure Marketing healthcare solution. Learn how sequence-based journeys can personalize outreach and optimize engagement with behavior-based triggers that improve campaign performance — without sacrificing data security.

Read the full post: LuxSci Enhances Secure Marketing with Automated Workflows

2. Healthcare Email Threat Readiness Strategies

Email remains a frontline channel for healthcare communications, and a prime target for cyber threats and criminals. This deep-dive into email threat readiness strategies covers essential practices like continuous monitoring, business continuity planning, and workforce training to mitigate email-borne security risks. Whether you’re responsible for clinical systems, marketing, or enterprise IT, this post provides a strategic playbook to strengthen your defenses, while maximizing your results.

Read the full post: Healthcare Email Threat Readiness Strategies

3. HIPAA Compliant Email — 20 Tips in 20 Minutes

For practical guidance you can apply right now, this on-demand webinar distills 20 key tips for HIPAA-compliant email across technical, legal, and operational domains. Whether you’re refining your infrastructure, improving deliverability, or modernizing your data security posture in 2026, this resource is a time-efficient way to elevate your compliance and security.

Read the post and watch the webinar on demand: HIPAA Compliant Email: 20 Tips in 20 Minutes

4. Is SendGrid HIPAA-Compliant? What You Should Know

Choosing the right email provider matters, especially when Protected Health Information (PHI) is at stake. In this post, we examine SendGrid’s capabilities in the context of HIPAA compliance, outline what it takes to send PHI securely, and offer guidance on evaluating third-party services for secure healthcare email and communication needs.

Read the full post: Is SendGrid HIPAA-Compliant?

5. LuxSci Shines in G2 Winter 2026 Reports

Customer feedback matters to LuxSci. In this post, we share the most recent news about LuxSci’s performance in the G2 Winter 2026 Reports, where we earned 20 badges across categories like Email Security, Encryption, Gateway, and HIPAA-Compliant Messaging. These reviews reflect not just product excellence, but trust from real users, which we work hard to build every day!

Read the full post: LuxSci Shines in G2 Winter 2026 Reports

Looking Ahead to 2026

We look forward to providing more information and insights on secure healthcare communications in the coming year, including the latest on HIPAA compliant email, PHI security, healthcare marketing, threat readiness, and personalized engagement. In the meantime, if you’re not already, follow us on LinkedIn below, and we’ll see you here in 2026!

Follow LuxSci on LinkedIn

LuxSci Welcomes Angel Mazariegos as Head of Finance

December 9, 2025
Pete Wermter

LuxSci, a leader in secure healthcare communications and HIPAA compliant email, is pleased to announce the appointment of Angel Marie Mazariegos as the company’s new Head of Finance. With over 25 years of experience in financial management, accounting, and human resources, Angel will play a central role in advancing LuxSci’s operational excellence and supporting the company’s rapid growth in 2026 and beyond.

Angel brings a wealth of expertise to LuxSci, having held senior leadership positions at organizations focused on financial services, language and access services for healthcare, and human resources. In these roles, Angel has led multi-department Finance and HR teams, spearheading critical initiatives, including ERP implementations, streamlined employee onboarding, and financial process optimization.

In her role at LuxSci, Angel will oversee all aspects of the company’s finance operations, including budgeting, forecasting and reporting. Additionally, Angel will manage the company’s HR function, ensuring that LuxSci continues to foster a strong, people-driven culture based on its Secure, Trust, Responsible and Smart company values.

“Angel’s blend of financial and HR leadership makes her an invaluable addition to the LuxSci executive team and a real asset for our people,” said Mark Leonard, CEO of LuxSci. “We look forward to working with Angel to build the high-performing teams that will be critical to our future growth and serving the evolving needs of our customers.”

Angel holds dual MBA degrees in Accounting and Human Resource Management from Cappella University, as well as dual BS degrees in Business Administration (Accounting and CIS Business Systems) from California State University, Los Angeles.

“I am honored to join the LuxSci team at such an exciting time for the company,” said Mazariegos. “I look forward to working with the team and helping build on LuxSci’s reputation for excellence and reliability in secure healthcare communications.”

Understanding Business Associate Agreements (BAAs) and Shared Responsibility

September 9, 2025
Pete Wermter

Modern-day healthcare organizations rely on a growing array of partners and vendors to provide them with the tools they need to effectively serve patients and customers.

However, while new digital solutions and healthcare ecosystems often result in greater productivity and efficiency, they also increase the number of third parties a company must communicate with and share protected health information (PHI), requiring a business associate agreement (BAA). Unfortunately, this increases the risk of PHI being exposed, as it increases a healthcare organization’s supply chain network and the number of external organizations with access to their data, significantly raising the risk of a security breach.

This is where the concept of shared responsibility comes in.

In this article, we explore the shared responsibility model for data security, explaining the concept, the role of a BAA in shared responsibility, and why healthcare companies need to know how it works and where it factors into their HIPAA compliance efforts.

What Is The Shared Responsibility Model?

Shared responsibility is a core data security principle that divides the responsibility for protecting data between a company that collects the data and a vendor that supplies the infrastructure or systems used to process said data.

The shared responsibility model grew in prominence as more companies moved to cloud-based environments and applications. In the past, when companies kept their systems and data onsite, they had more control over who could access their data and, subsequently, a better ability to mitigate data security risks.

However, in adopting cloud-based infrastructure and applications, companies have to process and store their data in the cloud – often in shared infrastructure with other vendors using the same cloud – which consequently shifts some of the responsibility of information security to the cloud service provider (CSP) itself. This marked a profound shift in the way data was handled, transmitted, and stored – necessitating an evolved approach to data security.

This fundamental shift in the way companies consume infrastructure and use apps ushered in the shared responsibility model: Where the cloud vendor provides the infrastructure or application, including HIPAA compliant and high secure environments, but it’s still the responsibility of the client to configure and use it securely.

Business Associate Agreements (BAAs) and Shared Responsibility

By detailing the respective responsibilities of healthcare companies or Covered Entities (CEs) and their vendors or Business Associates (BAs) in securing PHI, a Business Associate Agreement is a prime example of shared responsibility.

For example, the Business Associate shoulders the responsibility of providing the data safeguards required by HIPAA to secure patient data, such as infrastructure, encryption, audit logging, and even physical onsite security.

The Covered Entity, meanwhile, is responsible for conducting risk assessments, defining access control policies and processes, configuring services accordingly, workforce training, and continuous monitoring.

Additionally, both parties have the obligation to report security incidents to each other, as well as being independently accountable to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Why Shared Responsibility Is Essential for HIPAA Compliance

For healthcare companies, having a firm grasp of the shared responsibility model for safeguarding and securing PHI, and how they fit within your overall security posture is essential (for two key reasons).

Security Gaps

Firstly, clearly understanding the shared responsibility decreases the likelihood of security gaps. If CEs are under the impression that the vendor handles all aspects of data security, they won’t be as vigilant. They’ll be less inclined to configure services, educate their staff accordingly, pay appropriate attention to vendor security alerts, etc.

But the same is also true for BAs: If they assume their client does most of the heavy lifting in securing the data disclosed to them, they could be remiss in their duties to protect it. Without shared responsibility, each side simply assumes the other is covering a safeguard, opening the door for security gaps that malicious actors can exploit.

Fortunately, by detailing both parties’ (CEs and BAs) responsibilities and liabilities regarding data protection, a BAA removes this ambiguity and, more importantly, reduces the risk of security gaps. It’s critical to know the details and work with vendors building products for compliance versus implementing a tick-box approach to compliance that places too much burden on the CE.

Covered Entities (CEs) Are Ultimately Accountable

Subsequently, the second reason why it’s essential for CEs to understand the shared responsibility model, and increase their cybersecurity readiness accordingly, is that it’s the CE that’s ultimately held accountable for data breaches.

Mistakenly thinking that a BAA automatically makes them compliant may result in healthcare companies underinvesting in training, monitoring, and incident response. Conversely, understanding that even with a BAA in place, they’re the ones primarily accountable for protecting PHI gives them a greater sense of urgency to properly implement HIPAA compliant security measures.

The Covered Entity’s Role Within Shared Responsibility

Let’s look at the ways that healthcare companies have to hold up their end in the shared responsibility model.

Choose Compliance-Conscious Vendors

First and foremost, companies have to choose the right vendors to supply them with HIPAA compliant services and solutions.

Look for companies that market themselves as HIPAA compliant and display a detailed understanding of HIPAA requirements, particularly the HIPAA Security Rule. Do your due diligence and perform deeper dives on potential vendors, researching their stated security features, reviews from existing clients, whether they have certifications like HITRUST – and if they’ve been involved in any data breaches.

Naturally, a core prerequisite of being a HIPAA compliant vendor is being willing to sign a BAA, so you can immediately rule out any vendors not willing to do so. For instance, some healthcare companies may assume they can use widely adopted solutions such as SendGrid, Mailchimp, but they don’t offer a BAA.

Once you’ve confirmed a vendor offers a BAA, look through it to establish its terms and determine if it covers the services you’re interested in.

Configuration

Another core component of shared responsibility is comprehensive configuration management. While the BA’s responsibility is to provide a secure solution that satisfies HIPAA requirements, it’s the CE’s responsibility to configure it securely to fit within their IT ecosystem.

Features that often require configuration include:

Access control: Role-based access, Zero Trust, Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA).
Encryption settings: Enabling encryption, choosing encryption type, enforcing forced TLS, enabling storage encryption.
Feature restrictions: Disabling default configurations that enable integration with non-compliant tools.
Audit logging: Enabling audit logging and configuring log formats.
Retention settings: How long to retain audit logs and who is permitted to review them.

Finally, establishing a patch management strategy, i.e., when and how your organization applies software updates, is an important element of configuration. While the vendor must release updates to fix security vulnerabilities discovered in their solutions, it’s up to healthcare companies to deploy the patches.

Training

Regardless of how many security features a vendor bakes into their solutions, once deployed by a healthcare company, the tool is only as secure as the practices of their least security-conscious employee. Consequently, companies must train their staff on how to properly use a solution to process protected health information and sensitive data. The more an employee is required to handle PHI, the more thorough and frequent their training should be.

Key aspects of comprehensive cybersecurity training include:

Common cyber threats: what the most prevalent cyber threats are and how to recognize them.
Incident response: how to report a suspected security incident, i.e., who to contact and when.
Specific solution training: how to securely use systems that process PHI
Scope awareness: knowing which services within your organization’s IT ecosystem are HIPAA-compliant and which are not

Reporting

Although both healthcare companies and BAs have notification obligations to the HHS in the event of a data breach involving PHI, it’s the CE that bears most of the investigative burden.

Firstly, while a BA may report a security incident, it’s the CE’s responsibility to conduct a risk assessment to determine the probability of compromise of PHI, assess risk, and determine whether an official notification of a breach to HHS is necessary.

Secondly, BAs must notify the CE without unreasonable delay and no later than 60 days after discovery. Although BAs often wait to complete internal investigations before notifying the CE, the CE’s 60-day clock starts upon the BA’s discovery, not upon the BA’s report. Therefore, BA delays can create compliance risks for the CE.

To prevent this, where possible, you can include stricter contractual reporting timelines in the BAAs. This constantly keeps your company in the loop, ensuring you have sufficient lead time to complete your own investigations and your HIPAA-regulated deadlines.

LuxSci – Secure Healthcare Communications

Developed specifically to fulfil the stringent regulatory and ever-evolving data security needs of the healthcare sector, LuxSci’s secure email, text, marketing and forms solutions help companies protect PHI and personalize communications.

Equally as importantly, instead of leaving you to “figure it out” – pushing additional responsibility back onto your company – LuxSci has a reputation for the best customer support in the business, offering onboarding, detailed documentation, secure default configurations, and ongoing support to help navigate the murky waters of HIPAA compliance, while getting best-in-class performance out of your solution.

Contact LuxSci today to learn more or get a demo.

What Is HIPAA For Explanation Of Benefits Statements?

June 6, 2025
Erik Kangas

HIPAA for explanation of benefits statements includes privacy protections, disclosure limitations, and patient access rights that healthcare providers, payers, and suppliers need to understand when handling these documents. These requirements govern how explanation of benefits forms can be shared, stored, and transmitted while protecting patient information. Healthcare organizations processing explanation of benefits communications encounter specific HIPAA obligations that affect billing workflows, patient communications, and third-party interactions.

Privacy Protections in Explanation of Benefits Communications

HIPAA for explanation of benefits statements requires health plans to protect patient information contained within these documents. Explanation of benefits forms contain protected health information including patient names, dates of service, provider details, and treatment codes that qualify for privacy protections under HIPAA regulations. Health insurers processing explanation of benefits must implement safeguards to prevent unauthorized access, use, or disclosure of this information during document creation, transmission, and storage processes. The privacy protections extend to electronic and paper-based explanation of benefits communications. Health plans sending explanation of benefits via email need encryption or secure patient portals to protect information during transmission. When mailing paper explanation of benefits, insurers must use appropriate addressing and packaging to prevent accidental disclosure to unintended recipients. Correct implementation of these privacy measures prevents unauthorized access and maintains patient confidentiality.

Patient Access Rights for Explanation of Benefits Documents

Patients have specific rights under HIPAA regarding their explanation of benefits statements, including the right to receive copies, request corrections, and control how these documents are shared. Health plans must provide explanation of benefits to patients within reasonable timeframes and allow patients to designate how they prefer to receive these communications. Patients can request explanation of benefits in specific formats or ask that copies be sent to alternative addresses when medically necessary or for safety reasons. The right to request amendments applies to explanation of benefits when patients identify errors in treatment descriptions, billing codes, or other information contained within these documents. Health plans must have procedures for handling amendment requests and responding to patients within required timeframes. When approved, health plans must accommodate these requests according to HIPAA timelines and notification procedures.

Disclosure Rules for Explanation of Benefits Information

Health plans must follow certain disclosure rules when sharing explanation of benefits information with healthcare providers, patients, and third parties. HIPAA allows disclosure of explanation of benefits information for treatment, payment, and healthcare operations without patient authorization, but requires minimum necessary standards to limit information sharing to what is needed for the specific purpose. Healthcare providers can receive explanation of benefits details related to their patients’ claims processing and payment status as part of routine payment operations. Disclosure to family members or personal representatives requires either patient authorization or demonstration that the person has legal authority to act on the patient’s behalf. Health plans cannot share explanation of benefits information with employers, even when the employer sponsors the health plan, without specific patient authorization or as permitted under limited circumstances outlined in HIPAA regulations. Patient privacy remains protected while enabling health plans to conduct necessary payment and administrative activities.

Electronic Transmission Requirements for Explanation of Benefits

Electronic transmission of explanation of benefits requires compliance with HIPAA security standards to protect patient information during digital communication processes. Health plans using email, patient portals, or other electronic methods to deliver explanation of benefits must implement appropriate safeguards including encryption, access controls, and transmission security measures. These requirements apply whether explanation of benefits are sent as attachments, embedded in secure messages, or accessed through online platforms. The security requirements also cover explanation of benefits data stored in electronic systems, requiring health plans to implement administrative, physical, and technical safeguards to protect this information from unauthorized access or disclosure. Audit controls help track who accesses explanation of benefits information and when, providing accountability and helping identify potential security incidents. Organizations benefit from conducting periodic reviews to address emerging security challenges and technology updates.

Business Associate Obligations for Explanation of Benefits Processing

Third-party vendors processing explanation of benefits on behalf of health plans operate as business associates under HIPAA and must comply with specific obligations when handling this protected health information. Business associate agreements must outline how vendors will protect explanation of benefits data, limit its use to authorized purposes, and report any security incidents or unauthorized disclosures. These agreements help ensure that outsourced explanation of benefits processing maintains the same privacy and security protections required of health plans. Business associates processing explanation of benefits must implement appropriate safeguards for the information they handle and ensure that any subcontractors also comply with HIPAA requirements. The obligations include limiting access to explanation of benefits information to authorized personnel, providing security training, and maintaining audit logs of information access and use. Proper contract management and oversight ensure that all parties handling explanation of benefits information maintain appropriate privacy standards.

Compliance Monitoring for Explanation of Benefits Practices

Healthcare organizations need to consistently assess their explanation of benefits practices to ensure continued HIPAA compliance. Conducting audits also helps to identify potential gaps in privacy protections, disclosure practices, or security measures that could lead to violations. Training programs help staff understand their responsibilities when handling explanation of benefits information and keep them updated on regulatory changes that affect these communications. Incident response procedures specifically address explanation of benefits-related security breaches or privacy violations, including notification requirements and remediation steps. Documentation of explanation of benefits practices, policies, and training helps demonstrate compliance efforts during regulatory reviews or investigations. Consistent monitoring and documentation create a foundation for sustainable HIPAA compliance across all explanation of benefits operations..

HIPAA Compliant Email Use Cases for Healthcare Retailers

October 29, 2025
Pete Wermter

Today’s digital-first consumers expect the same convenience and personalization from their healthcare providers that they get from their favorite retailers and service providers. However, unlike companies in other sectors, there’s far less room for error for healthcare organizations, especially when it comes to privacy and data security.

Whether a local pharmacy, online provider of glasses, a wellness store, or a nationwide retail health clinic, the key to building long-term loyalty and ensuring trust with your customers lies in trusted, meaningful communication that’s timely, relevant – and, above all, secure.

As a result, HIPAA compliant email is a strategic component for reliable and effective communication with your customers.

But, what about HIPAA?

Far from being a roadblock, HIPAA compliance is actually an enabler for retail healthcare brands that want to deliver more personalized, more targeted messaging without putting customer trust, or their sensitive personal data, at risk.

In this post, we dive into the most impactful email use cases for retail healthcare providers, as well as how deploying a secure email delivery platform like LuxSci can unlock more meaningful engagement, greater loyalty, and accelerated growth for your company.

Why Email Remains a Top Channel for Retail Healthcare

Email Is Everywhere – Because It Works

Email isn’t just for work or spam folders. It’s the preferred communication channel for tens of millions of health-conscious consumers across all demographics. People are accustomed to receiving alerts from their pharmacies, reminders from clinics, and promotions from their preferred wellness brands – all in one convenient place – and email is an important part of the mix.

When deployed securely, email becomes a powerful, personal, and persistent touchpoint for healthcare engagement.

HIPAA Compliance Enables Trust and Transparency

While your customers crave convenience, they also demand privacy – especially when it comes to their health. HIPAA compliant email ensures that personal health data and protected health information (PHI) stays precisely that – protected – while enabling retail healthcare brands to deliver personalized communications that build trust and loyalty.

HIPAA Compliance Helps Ensure Secure Healthcare Marketing

HIPAA doesn’t restrict your ability to communicate; conversely, it defines how you can do it securely and best perform, while protecting the sensitive data under your care. When emails contain PHI, you need to ensure:

Email content encryption
Access controls
Secure storage and transmission
A signed Business Associate Agreement (BAA) with your email provider

With the key HIPAA requirements in place, retail healthcare organizations can send high-impact, personalized, and, with some platforms, such as LuxSci, automated emails to engage and educate their customers – all while adhering to HIPAA compliance regulations.

How HIPAA Compliant Email Improves Retail Results

HIPAA compliant email doesn’t just check a box – it opens the door for personalized, proactive, and performance-driven customer and patient engagement. With the right strategy and the right HIPAA compliant email services provider, healthcare retailers can:

Deliver marketing messages that include PHI with confidence
Develop trust and customer loyalty through secure, reliable, and frequent communication
Increase new and repeat purchases and average order value (AOV)
Lower operational costs in comparison to phone and physical mail-based engagement campaigns

HIPAA Compliant Email Use Cases for Healthcare Retailers

Now, let’s look at six essential use cases that healthcare retailers can employ for more effective customer and patient engagement.

Use Case #1: New Product Announcements

Why It Matters: Drive sales and keep customers informed

Whether it’s a new allergy medication, wellness supplements, or a wearable device, product launch email campaigns allow customers and targets to stay in the loop regarding new offerings that could benefit their health. This empowers individuals to take a more active role in their healthcare journey, while helping you meet your organization’s growth objectives.