HIPAA Compliant Fax
Secure cloud fax for your organization.
What is HIPAA compliant faxing?
Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is the 1996 federal ruling that governs patient privacy and what happens to entities that fail to keep patient information secure.
Under HIPAA, practitioners must look at the three rules of the act that govern privacy and security. These are as follows:
- Privacy Rule: Ensures privacy by keeping information that could identify a patient protected.
- Security Rule: This rule governs how practitioners keep electronic health records secure.
- Breach Notification Rule: If a security or data breach occurs, this rule governs who an entity notifies and how.
Ensuring HIPAA Compliance
To ensure compliance with the security rule in all electronic files, the practice must make regular assessments of its security risk, outline reasonable methods to avoid breaches, document its methodology, keeping records of its practices, and regularly auditing its system to ensure information sent remains secure. Additionally, the practice must have physical safeguards in place to prevent unauthorized use of computers, software, or documents that could disclose patient information.
HIPAA Fax Requirements and Security
While HIPAA does not specifically mention faxing, preferring to take a technology-neutral approach to its wording, your practice must still follow all requirements for keeping patient information secure.
When it comes to faxing, whether via analog or digital faxing, the system must follow these guidelines:
Correct Recipient
Steps must be taken to ensure faxes are sent to the correct recipient and no unnecessary errors are made.
Cover Sheet
A cover sheet is required to indicate the confidential nature of the information included.
Audit Trail
There must be a tracking method for where faxes go in case of a data breach or audit.
Select us for HIPAA Compliant Faxing
While sifting through terminology set forth in HIPAA can be confusing, selecting our service is not. Enjoy worry-free cloud faxing while sending and receiving documents and maintaining compliance through HIPAA’s allowance for cloud service providers to store and transmit sensitive data.
Using our secure service for sending and receiving faxes means that you no longer need to worry about storing physical files or destroying them properly after faxing to ensure security compliance. Our HIPAA compliant features include the following:
Encrypted Document Exchange
Fax protocol has inherent security features that make it an attractive means to transmit documents. We add to this by utilizing encryption technology whenever documents are transported to/from our network.
At Rest Encryption
All sensitive data is encrypted at rest. This means it cannot be accessed in any usable form outside of our secure web portal.
Secure Socket Layer Protocol
Our web interface and API access is accessible only through secure HTTPS connections.
Audit Trails
All document transmissions and log on/log off events are logged and recorded along with associated IP addresses.
User Authentication
All system access points require user authentication to access any secure data. We also implement auto-logoff features for additional protection. The system includes advanced administrative controls with customizable user permissions and roles.
Data Center Security
All web servers, application servers, and databases are housed in state-of-the-art SSAE16 Type II secured facilities with redundant hardware, power, and internet connectivity.
The above information is a small portion of how our data is secured. For more information on System, Application, and Operational Security measures taken, please visit our Security page to learn more.
Frequently asked Questions
Is HIPAA faxing safe for highly sensitive documents?
HIPAA compliant fax services cater specifically to the protected health information of patients. Because patient information is already highly sensitive, HIPAA compliant faxing also works well with other delicate information in other sectors. For instance, those in legal practices or financial services can use HIPAA compliant cloud fax services to relay the secure documents they frequently fax.
How does HIPAA faxing relate to security?
You can use the guidelines for HIPAA compliance as a security standard for your business. Whether in healthcare, finance, or any other field, using a secure faxing method that encrypts data and creates audit trails for following possible breaches is a good idea. Even credit card information that a small business may need to fax is still sensitive enough to warrant the extra security offered by our encryption. HIPAA compliance shows a high level of traceability, security, and privacy for any documents sent.
What is the HIPAA disclaimer cover sheet I must send?
When it comes to sending faxes, you must include a cover sheet, whether you send physical or digital fax. This cover sheet adds an extra layer of protection for the patient’s information.
The information included on the sheet should convey that the fax includes sensitive information. Using the words “confidential” and “important” on the sheet helps to ensure that it gets attention. Do not put any information that could identify the patient on the cover sheet. However, you should include your office’s contact number and a request to call immediately if the wrong person received the fax. These additions help to ensure that you had the correct fax number on file.
Don’t forget to include standard fax cover sheet information such as the name and number of both the sender and recipient, the subject, and the number of pages.
Do I need a HIPAA-compliant fax machine?
The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) does not officially endorse any specific technology. However, by choosing a fax service provider that will offer the information security levels required by HIPAA, you can send faxes while remaining compliant. You do not need a specific fax machine or special equipment to use SolvedIT Fax.
Can I use a HIPAA fax API?
Yes, you can use application programming interfaces to integrate cloud fax into your system. However, you must choose carefully the app that you use because as a covered entity under HIPAA, if the app causes a data breach, you will hold liability. Choosing our API to embrace the security of cloud faxing while maintaining the same features that make us HIPAA compliant lets you use this app for your healthcare business.
What types of healthcare entities use HIPAA compliant fax?
Any healthcare facility that currently uses traditional faxing can use HIPAA compliant cloud fax services, such as the following:
- Hospitals
- Clinics
- Physicians’ offices
- Medical testing centers
