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What Is a HIPAA Compliant Email API?

HIPAA Compliant Email Marketing Software

HIPAA compliant email API enables healthcare applications to send automated emails containing protected health information through secure programming interfaces that meet HIPAA Security Rule requirements. These APIs provide encryption, access controls, and audit logging capabilities while allowing developers to integrate email functionality into healthcare software without compromising patient privacy or regulatory compliance. Healthcare software applications increasingly need automated email capabilities for appointment reminders, test results, billing notifications, and care coordination communications. Standard email APIs lack the security features and compliance controls necessary for transmitting PHI, requiring specialized solutions designed for healthcare use cases.

API Authentication and Access Controls

HIPAA compliant email APIs implement robust authentication mechanisms that verify the identity of applications and users before allowing access to email services. These systems typically use API keys, OAuth tokens, or digital certificates to establish secure communication channels between healthcare applications and email services. Role-based access controls allow healthcare organizations to limit API functionality based on user privileges and business needs. Appointment scheduling systems might have permission to send calendar reminders while being restricted from accessing patient medical records or billing information. Rate limiting and usage tracking help prevent unauthorized bulk email sending and detect potential security threats. API providers monitor usage patterns and can automatically restrict access when they detect unusual activity that might indicate compromised credentials or malicious use.

Message Encryption and Security Features

Email messages sent through HIPAA compliant APIs receive automatic encryption during transmission and storage. These systems typically support multiple encryption standards including TLS for transport security and end-to-end encryption for message content protection. Message validation features help ensure that emails containing PHI meet compliance requirements before transmission. APIs can check for proper authorization, validate recipient addresses, and verify that message content follows organizational policies for PHI disclosure.

Secure message delivery tracking provides confirmation when recipients receive and access encrypted emails. This audit trail helps healthcare organizations demonstrate compliance with HIPAA requirements and provides documentation for potential breach investigations or regulatory audits.

Integration with Healthcare Workflows

HIPAA compliant email APIs connect seamlessly with electronic health record systems, practice management platforms, and other healthcare applications. These integrations enable automated patient communications that trigger based on clinical events, scheduling changes, or administrative milestones. Template management systems allow healthcare organizations to create standardized email formats that ensure consistent messaging while maintaining compliance controls. Templates can include dynamic content from patient records while preventing unauthorized PHI disclosure through automated formatting rules. Event-driven messaging capabilities enable real-time communications based on healthcare system activities. Laboratory systems can automatically send encrypted test results to ordering physicians immediately after completion, improving care coordination and reducing manual data entry requirements.

Audit Logging and Compliance Tracking

HIPAA compliant email APIs maintain detailed logs of all messaging activities including sender identification, recipient information, message content summaries, and delivery status. These logs provide the documentation necessary for compliance audits and breach investigations. Automated compliance reporting features help healthcare organizations track email usage patterns and identify potential policy violations. Reports can highlight unusual sending volumes, unauthorized recipient addresses, or messages that might contain inappropriate PHI disclosures.

Data retention policies ensure that API logs and message archives meet HIPAA requirements while managing storage costs and system performance. Healthcare organizations can configure retention periods based on their compliance needs and operational requirements.

Developer Tools and Documentation

API documentation provides healthcare software developers with detailed technical specifications, code samples, and integration guides for implementing HIPAA compliant email functionality. These resources help development teams understand security requirements and implement proper PHI handling procedures. Software development kits (SDKs) simplify API integration by providing pre-built libraries for common programming languages and frameworks. These tools handle encryption, authentication, and compliance features automatically, reducing the risk of implementation errors that could compromise PHI security. Testing environments allow developers to validate their integrations without exposing real patient data. Sandbox systems provide realistic API responses while using synthetic data that enables thorough testing of email functionality and error handling procedures.

Scalability and Performance Considerations

HIPAA compliant email APIs must handle varying message volumes without compromising security or compliance controls. Healthcare organizations experience different email patterns based on patient schedules, clinical activities, and administrative cycles that require flexible capacity management. Load balancing and redundancy features ensure reliable email delivery even during peak usage periods or system maintenance activities. API providers typically maintain multiple data centers and failover systems that prevent service disruptions from affecting patient communications.

Performance analytics help healthcare organizations optimize their email communications and identify potential bottlenecks in their workflows. Metrics include delivery speeds, error rates, and system response times that enable proactive performance management and capacity planning.

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Business Associate Agreement

Understanding Business Associate Agreements (BAAs) and Shared Responsibility

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.

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HIPAA Compliant Email

Signing a BAA Does Not Automatically Make You HIPAA Compliant

For healthcare organizations, choosing the right product and service vendors is essential for achieving HIPAA compliance. One of the key prerequisites of a HIPAA-compliant vendor is the willingness to sign a Business Associate’s Agreement (BAA): a legal agreement that outlines both parties’ responsibilities and liabilities in securing protected health information (PHI). 

However, despite what some healthcare organizations have been led to believe, simply signing a BAA with a vendor doesn’t guarantee your use of their product or service will be HIPAA-compliant. In reality, a BAA is just the beginning, and there are several subsequent actions both healthcare organizations and their supply chain partners must take to ensure the compliant use of PHI, especially over communications channels like email. 

With this in mind, this post explores some of the reasons why signing a BAA on its own doesn’t ensure the security of PHI and protect your organization from HIPAA violations.

Business Associate Agreements (BAAs) Explained 

As touched upon above, a BAA is a legally-binding document established between a covered entity (CE), i.e., healthcare organizations, and a business associate (BA), i.e, any company that handles PHI in providing a CE with products or services. For a BA to handle patient or customer data on behalf of a CE, following HIPAA regulations, there must be a BAA in place. 

A BAA details:

  • Each party’s roles, responsibilities, and liabilities in securing PHI.
  • The permitted uses of PHI by the BA and, conversely, restrictions on any other use.
  • The BA’s responsibilities in implementing appropriate administrative, technical, and physical security measures to best protect PHI.
  • The BA’s obligations to report any unauthorized use, disclosure, or breach of PHI.
  • That the BA is required to assist with patient rights support, i.e., data access, amendments, and accounting of disclosures, when appropriate.
  • The BA’s obligations in making records available for audits or investigations.  
  • The CE’s right to terminate the contract if the BA fails to fulfil their obligations in safeguarding PHI.

Additionally, if a BA employs a third-party company, i.e., a subcontractor, that will have access to a CE’s PHI, they are required to establish a BAA with that company. This then makes the subcontractor a “downstream BA” of the CE, and subject to the same obligations and restrictions placed on the original BA. This ensures the security protections mandated by HIPAA flow down the entire chain of custody for sensitive patient and customer data.

Compliance Considerations After Signing a Business Associate Agreement (BAA)

Now that we’ve covered what a BAA is and the role it plays in ensuring data privacy, let’s move on to exploring some of the key things you have to do following the singing of a BAA to ensure HIPAA compliance.  

1. Both Parties Must Implement HIPAA-Required Data Risk Mitigation Measures 

    First and foremost, while a BAA details each party’s respective responsibilities in implementing measures to protect PHI, both still actually need to implement those required security features to achieve HIPAA compliance. 

    The measures required under HIPAA’s Security Rule, including encryption and access control, are designed to mitigate and minimize the impact of data breaches. So, if a company suffers a security breach and later audits show the required security policies and controls were not in place, they would be subject to the consequences of HIPAA violations, including fines and reputation damage.   

    Also, while a BAA stipulates that the BA is responsible for implementing the HIPAA-required safeguards for the PHI under their care, it doesn’t specify exactly which security measures they must implement. Subsequently, that’s left to the BA to interpret based on their understanding of HIPAA requirements, and how they conduct their required risk assessments.

    For example, if you have a BAA with your email services provider, that alone may not be enough to keep your company or organization HIPAA compliant. That’s because the provider may not have the security measures your organization needs, and instead have a carefully worded BAA that will leave you vulnerable.

    Let’s say your email marketing service provider is a “semi-HIPAA compliant” provider. In these cases, they may not offer email encryption, or the necessary access control measures your organization needs to send PHI and other sensitive information safely. The so-called HIPAA compliance may be limited only to data stored at rest on their servers only.

    In short, although a BAA outlines each party’s commitment to securing data, both parties still have to follow through on implementing risk mitigation measures. Additionally, though a healthcare company has its BA’s assurances that they’ll have the appropriate safeguards in place, CEs often only have limited visibility into its ongoing security posture. As a result, asking the right questions and working with a proven HIPAA compliant provider are critical steps healthcare organizations must take to ensure full compliance.

    2. CEs Must Stick to “In-Scope” Services

      While a BA may provide a CE with a range of services, many limit the coverage of their BAAs to particular “in-scope” services. As a result, if a healthcare organization were to use a service outside the coverage of the BAA, i.e., an “out-of-scope” service, they’d risk exposing patient data and incurring HIPAA violations.

      And, even when a service is in-scope, the BA is still required to configure it properly for it to be compliant. These configurations could include:

      • Enabling encryption
      • Establishing access control
      • Activating multi-factor authentication (MFA)
      • Turning on audit logging 

      With this in mind, it’s crucial to ensure that the “complete” service or tool – not just a part of it – is covered by a BAA before using it to process PHI. Similarly, check the terms of your BAA for configuration or security best practices that offer guidance on fully HIPAA compliant use, and make sure your responsibilities as a CE are 100% clear.

      3. Staff Must Be Trained to Securely Handle PHI 

        Another key reason that signing a BAA doesn’t automatically result in HIPAA compliance is the likely need for both parties to educate their staff on how to securely handle sensitive data, such as PHI.

        Firstly, as discussed above, only some of the services offered by a BA may be covered by its agreement. Subsequently, a healthcare organization’s employees need to be sufficiently trained on the use and disclosure of PHI, namely, the services in which they’re permitted to process PHI and which, in contrast, services are non-compliant.

        By the same token, as well as implementing the stipulated safeguards, BAs are responsible for training their workforce on how to use and, where appropriate, configure them. This will help ensure the limited, correct use and disclosure of PHI as allowed by the BAA. 

        4. Reporting Requirements

          A BAA stipulates that a BA must notify the CE in the event of improper or unauthorized use of PHI. More specifically, this includes: 

          • Reporting immediately any use or disclosure not permitted by the terms of the BAA.
          • Notifying the CE of security incidents resulting in the potential exposure of  PHI.

          However, the commitment to reporting in the BAA and the ability to deliver on that commitment are two different things entirely. Firstly, the BA must implement the policies and infrastructure that allow for timely incident reporting. This includes conducting risk analysis, implemeting continuous monitoring, and developing a robust incident response plan. 

          Additionally, a key aspect of prompt, comprehensive reporting includes the BA ensuring that their staff are sufficiently trained to detect and report security events. As part of their training on the secure handling of PHI, a BA’s employees must be able to recognize common security issues and threats, such as improper email configurations and phishing attempts, and how to report them.

          5. Subcontractor BAAs

            While CEs must sign BAAs with their BAs for the compliant use and disclosure of PHI, they don’t have to sign such agreements with any subcontractors the BA may employ. Instead, it’s the responsibility of the BA to enter into their own business associate agreements with their subcontractors. As a result, the original security obligations are passed all the way down the data’s chain of custody. 

            While a CE can take certain measures to enforce this, such as requesting proof of subcontractor BAAs – or even the ability to review subcontractors before beginning engagement – ultimately, they have little control over their security postures. Ultimately, this means that they have to trust that the original service BA does their due diligence in selecting security-minded subcontractors, with the right PHI safeguards in place.  

            HIPAA Compliance Beyond a BAA with LuxSci

            LuxSci’s secure healthcare communications solutions – including HIPAA compliant email, text, marketing and forms – are designed specifically with the stringent compliance requirements of the healthcare industry in mind. 

            LuxSci also provides onboarding, comprehensive documentation, and support to ensure your infrastructure configurations align with HIPAA requirements, so you can confidently include PHI in your healthcare engagement communications campaigns.

            Contact LuxSci today to discover more about achieving compliance beyond obtaining a BAA.

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            healthcare marketing

            How Hypersegmentation Drives Greater Healthcare Marketing Engagement

            In healthcare marketing, effective engagement is crucial. It’s imperative that healthcare providers, payers, and suppliers know how to connect with their patients and customers, keeping them aware of all aspects of their healthcare journey – and empowering them to participate as much as possible. 

            This is where segmentation comes in. 

            Instead of sending out healthcare marketing email communications that appeal to as many people as possible, segmentation enables healthcare companies to appeal to specific individuals or groups. It opens the doors for scenarios in which patients and customers see a message in their inbox and think, ‘this message is for me’. 

            With that goal in mind, this post explores use cases and best practices in segmentation, why it’s so important for healthcare companies, and different ways that marketers can segment their audiences for optimal patient and customer engagement.

            What is Segmentation?

            Segmentation is the process of dividing your contact list, or audience, into smaller groups based on shared data, including protected health information (ePHI) characteristics. This could include demographics (age, gender, geographic location, etc.), medical conditions, risk factors, behaviors, and so on. 

            Why Segmentation is Essential in Healthcare Email Marketing

            For healthcare organizations, segmentation is a highly effective, and essential, strategy for sending patients and customers personalized email messaging. Personalized emails are more relevant to the recipient, which greatly increases the chance of them capturing their attention and subsequent engagement. 

            This allows healthcare companies to successfully achieve the objective of their email campaigns, whether that’s reducing the number of appointment no-shows, increasing adherence to care plans, securing payments, or boosting sign-ups or sales. More importantly, patients and customers are more involved in their healthcare journey, staying on top of upcoming appointments, receiving applicable advice and recommendations, and becoming aware of products and services that may prove beneficial to their health, improving overall outcomes. 

            Additionally, dividing audiences into distinct groups gives healthcare organizations invaluable insights into the behaviour and needs of different segments at different stages of the healthcare journey. 

            For instance, an email campaign targeting a particular segment may reveal that they’re more likely to miss appointments than other groups. Similarly, segmentation may highlight that a certain high-risk group neglects to book recommended health screenings. Such insights enable healthcare providers, payers, and suppliers to improve their email engagement strategies, to drive more desirable outcomes and, ultimately more satisfied, loyal, and, above all, healthier patients and customers. 

            How Can Segmentation Aid HIPAA Compliance?

            Another considerable benefit of segmentation for healthcare organizations is that it supports their HIPAA compliance efforts. Because segmentation necessitates setting precise rules that control which individuals receive particular emails, it greatly mitigates the risk of accidentally sending sensitive patient data to the wrong person. 

            Let’s say, for instance, that you want to conduct an email campaign targeting expectant mothers. By creating a segment comprised of pregnant patients or customers using the appropriate data field, you ensure that sensitive, pregnancy-related information is only sent to relevant parties. By reducing the likelihood of disclosing PHI to the wrong individuals, segmentation not only helps maintain regulatory compliance, but also preserves patient trust and confidence in your organization.

            Different Ways to Segment Your Audience 

            Demographic Segmentation

            This involves grouping individuals by shared demographic attributes such as:

            • Age
            • Gender
            • Location
            • Ethnicity
            • Education Level
            • Employment Status
            • Marital Status
            • Family Status
            • Socioeconomic Status (Income)
            • Spoken Languages / Preferred Language
            • Income
            • Insurance Coverage Type
            • Religious or Cultural Affiliations

            Demographic information is a very powerful way to segment audiences to send them valuable, highly relevant information, for example:

            • Sending mammogram or prostate screening recommendations to women or men over a certain age. 
            • Sending health alerts to people in a certain region or ZIP code in response to the emergence of a disease in their area (e.g., flu, a new COVID strain). 
            • Making educational material easy to understand and informative. 

            Clinical Segmentation

            Here, individuals are grouped according to medical criteria, such as:

            • Health conditions
            • Prescribed medications
            • Treatment plans
            • Recent surgeries or medical procedures 
            • Recent lab test results
            • Hospitalization history
            • Vaccination status

            This enables healthcare organizations to craft a wide range of specific communications that hone in on particular patients and customers, including:

            • Disease management and preventative care advice for people suffering from certain conditions, e.g, how diabetic patients can best monitor and manage their blood sugar.
            • Recovery guidance for post-operative patients. 
            • Feedback requests for individuals on particular treatment plans, in an effort to optimize them. 

            Healthcare Journey Stage Segmentation

            This divides individuals according to their position in their care journey within your organization. 

            For healthcare providers, new patients should receive onboarding materials, explanations of services and how to make the most of them, and similar materials that help them feel welcome and informed. Existing patients, meanwhile, can be further segmented into active, overdue (inactive), or high-risk groups – all of which have different needs and ways in which they should be communicated with: 

            • Active patients: appointment reminders, educational materials, event and service recommendations, satisfaction surveys, etc. 
            • Overdue and inactive patients: appointment or payment reminders, re-engagement communications, etc. 
            • At risk patients: more frequent communications, care coordination messages, or support service referrals

            Behavioral Segmentation

            This method of segmentation is based on how recipients interact with emails or services, including:

            • How often they open emails.
            • If they click through on links.
            • If they use patient portals.
            • If they complete forms.
            • How often they attend scheduled appointments. 

            This segmentation empowers healthcare organizations to tailor the content type, frequency, and calls-to-action based on real engagement insights, and also carry out automated workflows based on each individual’s interaction with an email.

            Supercharge Your Segmentation with LuxSci

            LuxSci’s empowers healthcare organizations to effectively segment their contact lists into distinct target audiences for greater engagement in the following ways:  

            • LuxSci Secure Marketing features powerful hypersegmentation capabilities for granular targeting that increase opens, clicks and conversions for your healthcare marketing campaigns. 
            • LuxSci Secure High Volume Email enables companies to execute campaigns encompassing hundreds of thousands or millions of emails, targeting specific groups and audiences. 
            • Easy integration with EHR, CDP, and CRM systems to leverages deeper levels data for highly targeting, highly personalized email campaigns. 

            Reach out today to learn how LuxSci can help you reach more patients and customers, drive more engagement and conversions, and improve overall outcomes.

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            healthcare marketing

            How Automated Workflows Boost Engagement for Healthcare Marketing Campaigns

            Due to the fact that it’s simple, instantaneous, cost-effective, and nearly universally adopted, email is an essential part of all healthcare marketing engagement strategies. However, consistent, personalized email engagement – particularly at scale – can be challenging. 

             

            Fortunately, Automated Workflows offer a solution, allowing healthcare companies to deliver the right messages to the appropriate individuals at the right time, based on their individual engagement with emails.. 

             

            In this post, we’ll explore the concept of Automated Workflows, the considerable benefits they offer healthcare companies, and the variety of ways they can be used to increase engagement and result in greater satisfaction and better healthcare outcomes for your patients and customers.

            What Are Automated Workflows?

            An Automated Workflow is a sequence of actions, known as’ Steps’ in LuxSci Secure Marketing, that a Contact (i.e., a patient or customer) moves through over time, based on a series of pre-defined rules or triggers. 

             

            Each Step is programmed to automatically perform a specific function, such as sending an email or updating a Contact, when certain conditions are in place. These conditions could include: 

            • A Contact opening a message.
            • A Contact clicking through on a link.
            • A specified amount of time having elapsed.. 
            • A data update via an API call

            By evaluating conditions to initiate the appropriate Step, Automated Workflows facilitate more timely, consistent, and personalized communication with Contacts (patients and customers ). As a result, healthcare companies can effectively harness Automated Workflows to develop dynamic, personalized email engagement journeys that adapt according to your patients and customers’ needs and prior interactions.

            What Are the Benefits of Automated Workflows?

            Let’s look at the various advantages that Luxsci Automated Workflows offer. 

            Reduced Administrative Workload

            Arguably, the most significant benefit of Automated Workflows is the extent to which they lower the administrative burden of email engagement campaigns for healthcare organizations. 

             

            First and foremost, Automated Workflows eliminate the need for an employee to manually send your Contacts messages. As well as the manual effort, it removes a great deal of thought from the process – as someone isn’t required to remember to send an email. 

             

            By the same token, this reduces the scope for human error, preventing the possibility of an employee neglecting to send an important message, sending it to the wrong person, or worse, accidentally exposing patient data, i.e., electronic protected health information (ePHI). 

             

            The effort that Automated Workflows reduce is typically repetitive work that staff are glad to be free of, giving them additional time to focus on tasks that provide greater value and better contribute to better patient care and/or the customer experience. 

            Enhanced Scalability

            The time saved by employing Automated Workflows increases with the size of your Contact List and the scale of your engagement campaigns. In fact, enterprise-scale campaigns, with volumes of hundreds of thousands to millions of emails, are only feasible through the use of automation. 

             

            Similarly, Automated Workflows enable healthcare organizations to run differing, personalized email campaigns aimed at unique patient or customer segments.  As well as automatically sending each message at the appropriate time, they provide tracking capabilities to determine the outcome of each message. 

            Increased Consistency in Communication

            Because Automated Workflows remediate the risk of emails going unsent, they facilitate more timely and consistent communications with patients and customers. This makes healthcare providers, payers, and suppliers appear more reliable and consistent, building trust and greater levels of satisfaction from Contacts. More importantly, recipients are better able to track what’s happening with their healthcare and assume a more proactive role overall healthcare journey..

             

            Finally, creating an Automated Workflow requires healthcare organizations to carefully consider how they communicate with different Contact segments. Namely, the likely journey, or communication path, different types of Contacts take, i.e., information they need to know at a particular stage in their healthcare journey, the optimal order in which information needs to be presented, etc. This allows healthcare companies to become more in-tune with their patients’ and customers’ needs, enabling them to craft more valuable email communications that boost engagement. 

            Personalized Healthcare Engagement 

            Perhaps the most significant benefit of Automated Workflows is that they enable adaptive, personalized engagement for healthcare marketing and communications campiagns. Instead of manually tracking where each Contact is in a given engagement sequence, or worse, merely having to guess, you know precisely where they are. Consequently, you’re acutely aware of their needs and the exact nature of the emails you need to send them next. 

             

            This, in turn, enables more effective Contact nurturing, i.e, strengthening your organization’s connection with each individual. When at its most effective, this may allow you to anticipate your Contacts’ needs, enabling you to send them communications, such screening or testing recommendations, educational materials, or product and service suggestions, that support their healthcare journey and enhance their quality of care.

            Automated Workflow Use Cases

            Automated Workflows are a powerful tool for increasing healthcare marketing and communications engagement because they can be applied to a wide range of use cases. Let’s take a look at some of the most common and impactful ways email automation can be used by healthcare companies. 

            • New Product Announcements: keeping patients and customers in the loop on your company’s latest offerings, as well as improvements to existing products and services that are likely to be of interest, based on their data and past actions.
            • Personalized recommendations: suggesting products or services based on the recipient’s past purchases or engagement history.
            • Re-Engagement Campaigns: Automated Workflows can also be used to reconnect with Contacts with whom engagement has waned or was never completely established, sending them personalized messages to encourage specific actions or reignite interest.
            • New Member Onboarding: welcoming new patients or customers  with a structured series of emails that introduces your services, provides technical assistance (where applicable), details subsequent steps, and explains how to get the most value from your products or services. 
            • Appointment Reminers and Follow-Ups: sending reminders, care instructions, medication adherence advice, or details on how to book subsequent appointments, for instance, after a patient visit. 
            • Patient Education Campaigns: taking patients through a structured curriculum on managing their medical condition or required  lifestyle changes to improve their health..
            • Preventative Care Communications: proactively sending reminders for screenings, check-ups, vaccinations, etc., based on PHI such as a patient’s age, gender, health condition or lifestyle risk factors.
            • Milestone Communications: sending personalized messages to acknowledge birthdays, enrollment anniversaries, and other pertinent dates. These can also be combined with preventative care communications, to send recommendations or other advice, based on the contact’s age, for instance.  
            • Feedback Collection: acquiring patient and customer feedback by sending follow-up surveys a set amount of time after a visit, procedure, purchase, etc. 

            How Automated Workflows Work in LuxSci Secure Marketing

            To round off this post, let’s take a deeper look at how Automated Workflows work within LuxSci’s Secure Marketing solution. LuxSci’s Automated Workflows enhance your organization’s HIPAA compliant healthcare marketing and email campaigns by giving you complete control of:

             

            • When each email is sent
            • Which Contacts receive particular communications according to their behavior, needs, and other PHI-based attributes
            • Which engagement path or branch a Contact takes based on their email actions

            Here’s a look at LuxSci’s Automated Workflows key capabilities in greater detail. 

            Smart Event-Based Branching and Conditions

            You can branch Workflows to trigger targeted messaging based on a Contact’s attributes or certain engagement events, resulting in more relevant and effective healthcare journeys  with more desirable outcomes.

            • User actions:
              • Mailing list sign-ups
              • Form completion
              • Downloading a resource.
            • Time-based triggers:
              • A set period after a visit or procedure 
              • A defined period of inactivity or lack of contact
              • Milestones, e.g., birthdays, anniversaries. 
            • Behavioral triggers:
              • Email opens
              • Clicking on links
              • Visiting particular pages on a site or 
              • A lack of engagement with previous emails.
            • Transactional triggers:
              • Purchasing a product or service
              • Signing up for an event
              • Order confirmations or shipping updates after a purchase.
            • API-triggered events
              • Lab results or similar correspondence becoming available
              • Changes to data in EHR systems, CDP platforms, or CRM systems.. 

            Automated Segment Management 

            Automated Workflows can be used to dynamically add Contacts to segments based on demographics, past behavior, purchase history, and similar events. This enables more precise targeting and email personalization as they progress through specific Steps in each Workflow. 

            Navigation Across Steps

            Automated Workflows are also capable of navigating Contacts across different Steps or completely different Workflows depending on engagement outcomes and updates to a Contact’s PHI. Better still, if a Step has already been visited, LuxSci Secure Marketing automatically prevents repetition and infinite loops.

            Automate Your Healthcare Marketing and Engagement Efforts

            LuxSci Secure Marketing is a HIPAA compliant healthcare marketing solution especially designed for the stringent security and regulatory requirements of the healthcare industry. Our solution enables healthcare organizations to confidently communicate with patients and customers at scale without risking compliance violations, driving increased engagement and boosting the ROI of their marketing campaigns in the process. 

             

            The latest version of LuxSci’s Secure Marketing solution with Automated Workflow functionality streamlines your company’s outreach efforts, saving considerable time, reducing human effort, and facilitating intelligent Contact management. 

            What’s more, LuxSci’s reporting capabilities empower you to carefully track the results of your healthcare engagement campaigns, gaining insights at every step, including:

            • Which Contacts received particular messages
            • Who engaged with email communication, and how
            • Precise points where drop-offs in engagement occur
            • The engagement achieved with each Step in the Workflow

            To learn more about LuxSci’s Secure Marketing solution and how Automated Workflows boost engagement for your healthcare marketing and communications campaigns, contact us today.

             

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            HIPAA Compliant Hosting Requirements

            What Are HIPAA Compliant Hosting Requirements?

            HIPAA compliant hosting requirements include administrative policies for workforce training and access management, physical controls for data center security and equipment protection, and information protections for data encryption, access controls, and audit logging. Healthcare organizations using hosting services must ensure providers implement appropriate business associate agreements, security measures, and compliance documentation that meet Privacy and Security Rule obligations for protecting electronic PHI. Healthcare organizations increasingly rely on cloud hosting and managed services to support their operations while reducing internal IT infrastructure costs. Outsourcing hosting responsibilities does not eliminate HIPAA compliant hosting requirements, requiring careful vendor selection and ongoing oversight.

            Administrative Protection Standards

            Workforce training requirements mandate that hosting providers educate their personnel about HIPAA obligations and PHI handling procedures. All staff with potential access to healthcare client data must understand privacy requirements and security protocols before gaining system access. Access management procedures ensure that hosting provider personnel receive appropriate permissions based on their job responsibilities and healthcare client needs. Role-based access controls limit employee exposure to PHI while enabling necessary system administration and support activities. Security officer designation requires hosting providers to appoint qualified individuals responsible for developing and implementing security policies that protect healthcare client data. Officers must have appropriate authority and expertise to ensure comprehensive compliance across hosting operations.

            Infrastructure & HIPAA Compliant Hosting Requirements

            Data center security controls must protect servers and network equipment from unauthorized physical access through multiple layers of security including perimeter controls, biometric access systems, and surveillance monitoring. These protections help prevent unauthorized individuals from accessing systems containing PHI. Equipment disposal procedures ensure that storage devices and servers containing healthcare client data receive appropriate destruction when they reach end of life. Hosting providers must implement certified data destruction methods that prevent PHI recovery from disposed equipment. Environmental protections including fire suppression, climate control, and power management help ensure that healthcare client data remains available and protected from physical threats. Systems of this nature support business continuity while maintaining data integrity and accessibility.

            Control Measures for HIPAA Compliant Hosting Requirements

            User authentication systems verify the identity of individuals accessing hosting infrastructure before granting permissions to view or modify healthcare client data. Multi-factor authentication provides additional security layers for privileged access to systems containing PHI. Unique user identification ensures that hosting provider activities can be traced to specific individuals through comprehensive account management and monitoring systems. These controls support accountability and enable investigation of potential security incidents involving healthcare client data. Emergency access procedures provide alternative authentication methods when normal access controls might delay urgent system maintenance or security response activities. These procedures must include enhanced monitoring and documentation requirements to maintain security while enabling necessary operations.

            Audit Controls and Activity Monitoring

            Comprehensive logging systems capture detailed records of all activities affecting healthcare client data including user access, system modifications, and data transfers. These logs must be protected from unauthorized modification and preserved for appropriate periods to support compliance demonstrations. Regular log analysis helps hosting providers identify unusual activity patterns that might indicate security threats or compliance violations. Automated monitoring tools can detect suspicious behavior and alert security personnel to potential incidents requiring investigation. Audit trail preservation ensures that activity records remain available for compliance reviews and incident investigations throughout required retention periods. Hosting providers must maintain secure log storage while providing healthcare clients with access to relevant audit information.

            Data Integrity and Transmission Security

            Encryption implementation protects healthcare client data during storage and transmission through approved cryptographic methods and key management practices. Hosting providers must maintain current encryption standards while ensuring that decryption capabilities remain available for legitimate access needs. Data validation procedures verify that healthcare client information maintains accuracy and completeness throughout processing and storage activities. These procedures help detect unauthorized modifications or corruption that could compromise data integrity or patient care. Backup and recovery systems maintain additional copies of healthcare client data while preserving security protections and access controls. Frequent testing ensures that backup systems function properly and can restore data without compromising compliance requirements.

            Network Security and Communication Controls

            Firewall configuration creates secure network boundaries that control traffic between healthcare client systems and external networks. These controls help prevent unauthorized access while enabling necessary communication for healthcare operations and patient care. Intrusion detection systems monitor network traffic for potential security threats and unauthorized access attempts involving healthcare client data. Automated alerting helps hosting providers respond quickly to potential incidents while maintaining comprehensive security coverage. Secure communication channels protect data transmission between healthcare clients and hosting infrastructure through encrypted connections and authenticated access methods. These channels help ensure that PHI remains protected during transfer and remote access activities.

            Business Associate Agreement Obligations

            Contractual requirements establish hosting provider responsibilities for PHI protection including specific security measures, incident response procedures, and compliance monitoring activities. These agreements must address all applicable HIPAA compliant hosting requirements while defining clear performance expectations. Liability allocation between healthcare organizations and hosting providers depends on their respective roles in PHI protection and which party controls different aspects of data security. Clear contractual provisions help define responsibility for various compliance obligations and potential violations. Termination procedures address how healthcare client data is handled when hosting relationships end including data return, destruction, or transfer requirements.

            Compliance Monitoring and Vendor Oversight

            Risk assessment procedures help healthcare organizations evaluate hosting provider security practices and identify potential vulnerabilities that could compromise PHI protection. These assessments should be conducted regularly and documented to demonstrate due diligence in vendor oversight. Performance monitoring tracks hosting provider compliance with contractual obligations and HIPAA requirements through security audits, incident reviews, and service level assessments. Healthcare organizations must maintain ongoing oversight rather than relying solely on initial vendor evaluations. Documentation requirements ensure that hosting providers maintain records demonstrating their compliance efforts including policies, training materials, audit results, and incident reports. Well kept records support healthcare client compliance demonstrations and regulatory reviews when requested.

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            Is AWS IAM HIPAA Compliant

            Is AWS IAM HIPAA Compliant?

            AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) can be part of a HIPAA-compliant environment when properly configured and used under a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) with Amazon. IAM itself provides the access control mechanisms necessary for protecting healthcare data, but doesn’t automatically create HIPAA compliance. Healthcare organizations must implement appropriate IAM policies, permission boundaries, and monitoring to become HIPAA compliant.

            Access Control Management

            AWS IAM manages access permissions for AWS resources through users, groups, and roles with various policies. Healthcare organizations use IAM to restrict who can access protected health information stored in AWS services. This service helps fulfill the HIPAA Security Rule requirements for access management and authorization controls. IAM enables detailed permissions that follow the principle of least privilege, giving users only the access they need to perform their jobs. While IAM provides these security capabilities, healthcare organizations remain responsible for configuring them properly to be HIPAA compliant.

            Configuration Steps

            Healthcare organizations must implement particular IAM configurations to support HIPAA compliance. Multi-factor authentication adds an extra verification layer beyond passwords for accounts accessing patient data. Permission boundaries limit maximum privileges that can be granted to users or roles. IAM policies should restrict access based on job functions and responsibilities. Regular access reviews verify that permissions remain appropriate as staff roles change. Password policies enforce complexity requirements and regular rotation. Organizations typically document these configuration decisions as part of their overall security planning to demonstrate efforts to become HIPAA compliant.

            Audit Trail Implementation

            HIPAA requires tracking who accesses protected health information and when this access occurs. AWS IAM integrates with CloudTrail to log all user activities and API calls. These logs create audit trails showing who performed what actions on healthcare data. Organizations must configure appropriate log retention periods based on their compliance requirements. Monitoring tools should alert security teams about suspicious activities like failed login attempts or unusual access patterns. This monitoring capability helps organizations identify potential security issues and respond promptly to maintain HIPAA compliance.

            Complementary AWS Security Services

            IAM works with other AWS services to create a complete HIPAA compliance environment. AWS Organizations helps manage multiple accounts with centralized policy control for healthcare environments. AWS Key Management Service (KMS) handles encryption keys that protect healthcare data. AWS Secrets Manager securely stores database credentials and API keys. AWS Control Tower provides guardrails that enforce security policies across multiple accounts. Healthcare organizations often implement these services together to create thorough security architectures. This integrated approach helps maintain consistent controls across all systems handling protected health information.

            Permission Management Approaches

            Effective IAM policy management forms an essential part of maintaining HIPAA compliance. Organizations should document their IAM policy creation and review processes. Templates for common healthcare roles help maintain consistency when creating new accounts. Regular policy reviews identify and remove unnecessary permissions. Automated tools can validate that policies align with security standards and best practices. Changes to IAM permissions should follow change management procedures with appropriate approvals. These practices help organizations maintain proper access controls throughout their AWS environment.

            BAA HIPAA Compliant Requirements

            AWS offers a Business Associate Agreement covering IAM and other services used for protected health information. This agreement establishes AWS as a business associate under HIPAA regulations. Healthcare organizations must execute this BAA before storing any patient data in AWS. The agreement covers AWS services listed in AWS’s compliance documentation, with IAM included among eligible services. Organizations remain responsible for properly configuring and managing IAM despite the BAA coverage. Regular compliance reviews should verify that IAM implementations continue to meet both AWS best practices and HIPAA requirements.

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            LuxSci HITRUST Certified

            LuxSci Achieves HITRUST Certification for Third Consecutive Term

            We’re thrilled to announce our latest data security achievements here at LuxSci! Once again, LuxSci has achieved HITRUST CSF® certification, following a multi-step process that includes a deep assessment, validation, and quality assurance analysis for a company and its products. Our 2024-26 certification marks the third consecutive time that LuxSci has received the 2-year HITRUST certification, meeting the rigorous standards set by the HITRUST CSF framework.

            In related news, LuxSci, which is GDPR compliant, has also renewed its US-EU Data Privacy Framework (DPF) certification for the next 12 months. According to the certification, U.S. companies that participate in the DPF provide adequate levels of security for personal data transfers received from the EU within the scope of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This renewal enables us to support customers in Europe, while ensuring we meet the highest data protection standards for cross-border data transfers. For customers that do business in the EU and UK, LuxSci ensures data privacy is upheld in compliance with regulations.

            Our latest security certifications are a testament to our continuous and unrelenting commitment to delivering the highest levels of data protection for healthcare communications. This includes securing email, marketing, text, forms and hosting—while also improving patient engagement and outcomes with the use of protected health information (PHI) in communications.

            Why HITRUST Certification Matters in Healthcare

            In the healthcare industry, protecting sensitive patient data is not just a legal requirement—it’s an ethical responsibility and an imperative for any company or organization in existence today. While HIPAA compliance establishes a strong baseline for safeguarding patient information, HITRUST certification takes data protection a step further. The HITRUST Common Security Framework (CSF) integrates multiple regulatory standards, including HIPAA, to provide a comprehensive approach to information security, privacy, and risk management.

            For healthcare organizations—and larger companies and enterprises, in particular—partnering with a HITRUST-certified provider like LuxSci provides peace of mind. You can trust that our security controls not only meet HIPAA standards but also go beyond them to address the latest industry challenges and emerging threats—we do this constantly, year after year.

            How HITRUST Enhances Data Security Beyond HIPAA

            HIPAA establishes the essential requirements for securing protected health information (PHI), putting a solid, but basic foundation in place. HITRUST certification is recognized for going beyond the basics. Here’s how:

            • Comprehensive Approach to Risk Management: HITRUST CSF combines various security, privacy, and regulatory standards such as NIST, ISO, and PCI-DSS, providing a more robust framework for managing risks in healthcare.
            • Continuous Monitoring and Improvement: HITRUST requires organizations to continuously monitor and improve their security measures, ensuring that their defenses evolve alongside new threats and new technologies.
            • Tailored Security Controls: HITRUST’s framework scales based on the size, complexity, and nature of the organization, offering flexibility while maintaining a high standard of security.
            • Third-Party Validation: Achieving HITRUST certification involves rigorous third-party audits, which demonstrate that an organization’s security practices are not only in place but have been thoroughly validated.

            The Benefits of HITRUST Certification for Healthcare

            For healthcare providers, payers, and suppliers, the advantages of partnering with a HITRUST-certified organization like LuxSci are clear:

            • Streamlined Compliance: HITRUST certification simplifies compliance with multiple regulatory frameworks, reducing the burden of managing multiple audits and certifications.
            • Enhanced Patient and Customer Trust: By choosing a HITRUST-certified partner, you show patients, partners, and regulators that your organization prioritizes the highest levels of security.
            • Future-Proofing: HITRUST ensures that you’re not just up to date with today’s standards but prepared for future regulatory requirements and security challenges as they arise.

            At LuxSci, we remain committed to delivering secure, scalable, and flexible HIPAA-compliant healthcare communications solutions that our clients can depend on for the highest levels of data protection.

            If you’d like to learn more about LuxSci’s secure healthcare communications solutions—and how we elevate your healthcare data protection to the next level—contact us today!

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            HIPAA marketing questions

            HIPAA-Compliant Email Marketing: FAQ

            Email is an essential channel for most marketers. However, HIPAA regulations raise many questions for healthcare marketers who need to execute email marketing campaigns without violating patient privacy.

            HIPAA is a complicated law that offers a lot of guidance but does not require the use of any specific technologies to protect patient privacy. The ambiguity causes a lot of confusion for marketers trying to integrate email into their marketing strategy. This article addresses some frequently asked questions about HIPAA-compliant email marketing and offers advice for securing patient data and futureproofing your marketing.

            Do generic practice newsletters need to be protected?

            Some marketers assume practice newsletters do not contain health information and, therefore, do not fall under HIPAA requirements. However, this assumption is often incorrect. Many are surprised to learn that protected health information can be implied from seemingly benign information.

            In this way, many generic email newsletters often indirectly contain PHI because they are sent to lists of current patients. Email addresses are individually identifiable and combined with the email content; it may imply that they are patients of the practice. For example, say you send a “generic” newsletter to the patients of a dialysis clinic. An eavesdropper may be able to infer that the recipients receive dialysis. Therefore, the email reveals information about an individual’s health treatment, is PHI, and should be secured in compliance with HIPAA regulations.

            In some cases, it can be complicated to determine what is PHI and what is not. Using a HIPAA-compliant marketing solution is best to avoid ambiguity and ensure security.

            How Do I Find a HIPAA Compliant Email Marketing Vendor?

            Unfortunately, using broadly popular email marketing platforms is not recommended. Many of these platforms were designed for e-commerce businesses and are not secure enough to meet HIPAA requirements. We do not recommend using a solution not specifically equipped to meet the healthcare industry’s unique security and compliance needs. To determine if your email marketing provider is compliant, they must meet three broad criteria at a minimum.

            1. The vendor must sign a Business Associate Agreement outlining how they plan to secure your data and what they will do in the event of a breach.
            2. Encrypt data at rest when it is stored in their systems.
            3. Encrypt email messages and data in transit as it is sent to the recipients.

            email marketing vendor comparison

            Not all vendors will be up to the task. Carefully vet your email marketing vendors to ensure they are taking steps to secure data and protect patient privacy.

            What is an Email API?

            API is an acronym that stands for “Application Programming Interface.” An email API gives applications (like CRMs, CDPs, or EHRs) the ability to send emails using data from the application. Email APIs also return campaign data to the platform or dashboards so you can assess the effectiveness of your marketing efforts. Trigger-based transactional or marketing emails are ideal for sending with an email API. In this situation, emails are sent when pre-determined conditions in the application are met. Healthcare organizations may use email APIs to send appointment reminders using electronic health records system data about a patient’s upcoming appointment.

            Email APIs enable the automation of common email workflows. However, they are not interchangeable with email marketing platforms. Email APIs do not include the contact management systems standard in most email marketing platforms because all that data lives within the application they connect to. In addition, email API tools typically do not include drag-and-drop editor tools or other design features that help your emails stand out.

            Does HIPAA permit providers to send unencrypted emails with PHI to patients?

            Encryption is an addressable standard under the HIPAA Security Rule, but that does not mean it is optional. The HIPAA Privacy Rule does not explicitly forbid unencrypted email. Still, it does state that “other safeguards should be applied to protect privacy reasonably, such as limiting the amount or type of information disclosed through the unencrypted email.”

            In addition, the Department of Health and Human Services also states that “covered entities are permitted to send individuals unencrypted emails if they have advised the individual of the risk, and the individual still prefers the unencrypted email.” Some organizations use waivers to inform patients of the risks and acquire permission to send unencrypted emails.

            However, we do not recommend this approach for several reasons:

            1. Keeping track of waivers over time and recording status changes and updates is challenging.
            2. Signed waivers do not insulate you from the consequences of a HIPAA breach.
            3. And finally, using waivers to send unencrypted emails doesn’t eliminate your other HIPAA obligations like data retention and disposal. Using a HIPAA-compliant solution is more manageable and eliminates ambiguity.

            Can patients exercise their right of access by receiving PHI via unencrypted email?

            Yes, but they must be fully informed of the risks and sign waivers acknowledging them. The caveats in the previous answer apply. It’s always better to utilize an encryption tool to protect patient data.

            Is Microsoft 365 or Exchange 365 encryption sufficient for marketing emails?

            Microsoft 365 can be configured with Office Message Encryption (OME) to comply with HIPAA. However, the program is not well-suited to HIPAA email marketing. OME primarily relies on portal pickup encryption, in which the message is stored securely on a server and requires the recipient to log in to the portal to read the email. If you are a marketer trying to increase engagement, the portal adds a barrier to access that many will not cross. Light-PHI marketing messages are best sent using TLS encryption. TLS-encrypted messages arrive in the recipient’s inbox just like a regular email and do not require a user to log in to read the message.

            TLS versus Portal Pickup email encryption

            In addition, Microsoft 365 is not configured to send high volumes of email. If you plan to send large marketing campaigns, you could unintentionally disrupt regular business communications by sending all the messages through the same infrastructure. You should separate your business and marketing email sending to protect your IP reputation and achieve your desired sending throughput.

            What are common email marketing use cases for healthcare?

            Email marketing in healthcare is not restricted to boring practice newsletters. When you utilize tools that enable the use of PHI in your targeting and personalization efforts, the sky is the limit. With consumer preferences shifting toward digital communications, marketers willing to utilize the email channel and tactics like segmentation and personalization can see better results.

            Email is an excellent way to communicate with patients. A sampling of ways that healthcare marketers can use email include:

            • engaging patients in their healthcare journey
            • educating patients about their healthcare conditions and treatments
            • improving attendance and scheduling
            • retaining patients
            • increasing preventative procedures
            • collecting data on the patient experience
            • improving patient satisfaction

            Conclusion

            HIPAA can be difficult to understand, but choosing the right tools and adequately vetting your vendors makes it easy to execute HIPAA-compliant email marketing campaigns. If you are interested in learning more about LuxSci’s easy-to-use, Secure Marketing platform, please contact our sales team.

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