What health care reforms lie ahead in 2017? Do you think the fate of the Affordable Care Act is your biggest concern? Our view is, probably not, because there are core requirements for quality patient care in a competitive environment that you need to master, regardless. Patient engagement, new patient attraction and sound business management are still the keys to your profitability regardless of the type or size of your practice.

The internet and social media give you terrific tools to attract and keep patients. But guess what? HIPAA rules apply to those tools. Do you know the basics about how to email and text with patients but stay compliant with HIPAA? There are 3 simple steps – it is NOT complicated. 1. Notify, 2. Let the Patient Decide, and 3. Document.  Forms you need are in The HIPAA E-Tool ® PR-3.A 

Another threat to profitability is the growth in cybercrime. The best electronic health records system in the world cannot prevent every breach. Although hacking from a distance is a concern, breaches often result from simple human error by staff in your office. Laptops stolen out of cars (Valley Hope Association, December 2015); innocent clicks on a phishing attack (Anthem, 2014 and City of Hope, 2016); emails mistakenly sent to the wrong address (BJC ACO, 2015). Cybercrime continues to be the fastest growing threat to data records of all business sectors, not only healthcare (MongoDB, 2017). A profitable business requires thorough risk analysis and risk management to prevent data breaches through prevention, preparation and response planning. See The HIPAA E-Tool ® RA-1.

The challenges to profitability of health care providers in 2017 are much the same as in 2016, only more so. Good management means complying with HIPAA and The HIPAA E-Tool ® is an easy reliable way to manage your compliance.