Why Email Encryption Is Crucial In The EHR Age

By Daniel Stevens, Chief Executive Officer, Send Technology Inc.

This article uncovers the vulnerabilities inherent in email communication and why email encryption is crucial to protecting PHI in this era of EHR ubiquity.

Like it or not, the Electronic Health Record (EHR) era is upon us. Ushered in by the Obama administration, it is now officially endorsed by law. But the idea of widespread usage of EHR is making health care providers and their clients understandably wary of possible new threats on Protected Health Information (PHI).

The hesitation isn't due to the fact that electronically stored information is more vulnerable than physically stored ones. It is, however, that unlike regular PHI, a large majority of the population neither have the ability to identify threats against electronic PHI (also known as ePHI) nor have the inherent technical "know how" to counter them.

Note: In this article, I'll just use PHI to refer to both regular PHI and ePHI.

Here's an example, because some EHRs already have built-in controls, health care providers who own them believe PHI under their custody is already secure – and they're partially correct. However, what they may not know is that when they start sharing PHI with other providers or business associates through email, security and privacy can then be compromised.

This article will explain why PHI in email is very vulnerable and why email encryption is a critical element for providing protection to PHI in an age of EHR ubiquity. It will also discuss how encryption can reduce the hassles and bring down the costs associated with the HIPAA and HITECH regulations. Access This Content To Read This Article In Its Entirety.