HIPAA Compliant Business Associates can be Found Easily Using New Tool
Healthcare groups are only authorized to use business associates that agree to adhere with HIPAA Rules and complete a business associate agreement, but locating HIPAA compliant business associates can be difficult.
Locating HIPAA compliant business associates is time consuming, although identifying vendors willing to follow HIPAA Rules is only a small part of the steps required.
Business associate agreements must then be reviewed, often incurring legal fees, and healthcare groups must obtain assurances from new business associate that appropriate security measures have been implemented to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of any PHI they supply.
It is also difficult for vendors that wish to profit from the opportunities in the healthcare sector. They must be able to show they have implemented proper safeguards and need to provide reassurances that their products and services support HIPAA-adherence.
A solution has now been formulated that resolves the challenges for both parties and streamlines the process of locating HIPAA compliant business associates. Would-be business associates can also utilize the solution to display that they have the necessary security measures in place to ensure their products and services can be used without breaching HIPAA Rules.
The HIPAA Alliance Marketplace is a closed ecosystem established by the Compliancy Group, which serves as a repository for HIPAA-compliant vendors that can be used to put medical professionals in touch with trusted vendors.
HIPAA-covered bodies can enlist and search the Marketplace for a broad range of service providers, including IT and Managed Service Providers (MSPs), medical billing and collections companies, software and application developers, cloud computing platforms, insurers, printing and mailing vendors, practice management firms, and EHR suppliers.
In order for a vendor to be listed in the HIPAA Alliance Marketplace directory, they are first subjected to a strict vetting process, in which their services and solutions are assessed against HIPAA Rules. If the audit is passed, the vendor is given a HIPAA Seal of Compliance – a reassurance that the vendor has been adequately assessed and is a trusted provider.
“The HIPAA Alliance Marketplace is the only tool of its kind for the health care market today,” stated Marc Haskelson, President and CEO of Compliancy Group on the launch of their new HIPAA Alliance Marketplace. “In this climate of data breaches, ransomware, and cyber-security threats, health care providers can rely on the HIPAA Alliance Marketplace to find HIPAA compliant vendors with the security and privacy infrastructure in place to keep their data safe.
“Vendors can confidently execute Business Associate Agreements with their clients, and providers can be confident in their choice of vendors vetted and verified by the HIPAA Seal of Compliance.”