What Does “HIPAA Certified” Mean? The Truth About HIPAA Certification
The short answer: There is no official government-issued “HIPAA certification.” The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) does not offer, endorse, or recognize any HIPAA certification program. When a vendor, software provider, or service claims to be “HIPAA certified,” that certification comes from a private third-party organization — not from HHS or any... Continue reading
What Does HIPAA Stand For?
HIPAA stands for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. It is a federal law signed by President Bill Clinton on August 21, 1996. HIPAA establishes national standards for protecting sensitive patient health information — known as protected health information (PHI) — from being disclosed without a patient’s knowledge or consent. The law is administered... Continue reading
Who Needs to Be HIPAA Compliant?
Healthcare organizations often ask the same critical question: who needs to be HIPAA compliant? The answer is broader than many companies realize. HIPAA compliance applies to more than hospitals and doctor’s offices. Health insurance companies, healthcare software vendors, cloud hosting providers, medical billing companies, and even email providers may all fall under HIPAA regulations depending... Continue reading
HIPAA Compliant Tools for Healthcare Practices in 2026
If you run a healthcare practice in 2026, choosing the right technology is no longer just an operations decision. It is a compliance decision. From email and document sharing to website hosting and patient intake, nearly every digital tool in a modern practice touches sensitive information in some way. That means providers need to think... Continue reading