Patient Privacy and Digital Marketing: Balancing Personalization with HIPAA Compliance

In 2023 alone, more than 133 million health records were either exposed or disclosed without permission. The threat becomes even bigger as healthcare marketing is increasingly digital. With the rise of AI and new digital marketing technologies and trends, patient data protection is at higher risk. 

Does this mean we should completely abandon digital marketing for the healthcare industry? Not at all. You just need the right strategy.

As you obtain patient consent, train your team, and analyze domain health for your emails, you can increase your chances of HIPAA compliance. 

Key takeaways:

• HIPAA is a US federal law aimed at protecting sensitive patient health information.
• Digital marketing in healthcare should comply with HIPAA standards.
• Not respecting the HIPAA guidelines may result in reputational damage and financial penalties.
• Data controls and email authentication can help you achieve HIPAA compliance.
• Email marketing is one of the most effective and popular digital marketing methods.

What Is HIPAA?

HIPAA stands for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. It is designed to protect patients from unlawful disclosures of their health information. This ensures that sensitive details about a patient’s health are not shared without authorization. The rule helps prevent negative consequences such as harm to a patient’s personal privacy.

What Is HIPAA-Compliant Marketing?

In healthcare, marketing is used for

• Attracting new patients
• Engaging with existing patients
• Building trust
• Enhancing patient experience
• Increasing profits

Many marketing strategies and tactics used in other fields are not allowed in the healthcare sector. HIPAA has specific guidelines that healthcare marketers should follow. Patient consent and authorization are an integral component of HIPAA marketing.

Failure to comply with HIPAA in healthcare digital marketing may lead to:

• Legal consequences
• Hefty fines
• Loss of trust
• Loss of customers
• Difficulty in securing partnerships

Exceptions to the Rule

The exceptions include treatment advice and payments. They also cover announcements on features, health plans, and services.

Third-Party Promotions

Let’s say a healthcare provider sells its patient list for use in third-party promotions. This activity is considered marketing under HIPAA. Such actions require explicit patient authorization.

Gray Areas

In some cases, the line between marketing and general communications might be unclear to the general public. Let’s say a pharmacy is sending prescription refill reminders, or a primary care doctor is referring a patient to a specialist. HIPAA doesn’t consider this as “marketing.”

HIPAA-Compliant Digital Marketing Best Practices

Here are some examples of HIPAA-compliant digital marketing:

• Content marketing with de-identified data
• Patient testimonials with written consent
• Segmented email marketing
• Sharing general information without specific patient data

Here are some best practices you should follow to stay HIPAA-compliant in your marketing efforts:

Study the Rules

HIPAA, as strict as it may be, is also quite valuable in setting clear guidelines on what is what. When you carefully study the HIPAA rules and requirements, you will understand what exactly is expected of you. It will tell you how you can incorporate personal health information in your marketing materials. 

Ask Before You Act

Always seek patient consent before you use any of their information, regardless of how benign and harmless the piece of data may seem. Aim to obtain consent even in cases where you’re unsure whether an activity is marketing or general communication. It’s better and easier to ask than to pay thousands of dollars of money for HIPAA violations. 

When you ask for consent and get it, ensure you have proof of this consent. Whether it’s in the form of a text, a recording, or anything else, getting evidence of explicit proof can prove quite valuable when needed. 

Leverage Data Controls

When you’re given the right to use certain sensitive information in your marketing materials, be cautious with it. The person gave consent to you, but you shouldn’t assume they would also give consent to person X or Y. 

Only authorized entities have the right to access patient health information. So not only using but also accessing such information is forbidden for unauthorized parties. 

Who would be happy to find out their sensitive health information has been exposed? Let alone if the information gets accessed by someone with malicious intent. Therefore, you should always use data controls and vet the patient data to protect the patient’s security and privacy. 

Collaborate with Compliant Marketing Agencies

If you do need to work with a marketing agency, then ensure it signs business associate agreements (BAAs). A marketing agency whose practices don’t respect HIPAA regulations should be out of your consideration. 

Safeguard Your Emails

Healthcare is one of the best-performing fields for email engagement. It has an average of 41.23% open rate for healthcare-related email campaigns. Healthcare organizations should pay special attention to their email hygiene. These include the following actions. 

Encrypt and Multifactor

Encrypting your emails can help you prevent unauthorized actors from accessing patient data.

Leverage Email Authentication

Healthcare faces a larger number of phishing attacks than any other sector. This makes DMARC, DKIM, and SPF implementation essential to protect your email communications and the patient data that’s in there. Proper email authentication can help avoid spam filters and boost email deliverability. This will contribute to your digital marketing success as well. 

Have difficulties with configuring these protocols? Hosted services by PowerDMARC can help you reach proper email authentication with minimal effort from your side. 

Ensure Smooth Subscribe and Unsubscribe

You would ask for patient consent before using their data in marketing materials. You should also ask for consent when including them in your email lists. The consent, in this context, may take the form of a subscribe button. This isn’t directly connected with HIPAA. However, it’s an important basic step toward digital marketing that’s relevant and personalized. 

FAQs

1. What exactly is HIPAA?

HIPAA sets strict standards for managing, transmitting, and storing protected health information.

2. Why does marketing in healthcare differ from marketing in other fields?

Healthcare in digital marketing includes sensitive patient data. If disclosed, it may cause irreparable harm to the patient. 

3. How can I achieve HIPAA compliance?

Try to understand HIPAA, leverage data controls, use encryption, and ask for patient consent.

4. What’s the most important digital marketing medium in healthcare?

Email is the most common and effective digital marketing channel in healthcare.

5. Why is email authentication important in healthcare digital marketing?

Email authentication can help prevent hackers from accessing sensitive patient data.

Summing Up

The harms of disclosing sensitive patient data in digital marketing are beyond legal or financial. It might completely ruin the patient’s subsequent life. It may also cause significant harm to the health organization’s reputation. 

Thankfully, standards like HIPAA help protect patient privacy. While they might seem too strict at first, they play a crucial role in balancing personalization with patient privacy.

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