When you’re running a private healthcare practice, email is a lifeline. From patient intake forms to referral updates, billing messages to record requests, most important communications go through your inbox.
If you use Gmail, Outlook, or another popular email service, you may not be following HIPAA rules. This can happen if you don't have the right protections in place. One unsecured message containing patient details can put your entire practice at risk.
That’s why secure, HIPAA-compliant email isn’t optional. It’s essential.
The team created SentSafe for private practice teams. It helps them send secure emails that follow HIPAA rules.
It does this without the complexity of large companies. Our platform has built-in encryption, audit logs, access controls, and a signed Business Associate Agreement (BAA). This means you take care of compliance from the first message you send.
HIPAA compliant email is email that follows the rules in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). It meets the required technical, administrative, and physical safeguards. This type of email ensures Protected Health Information (PHI) is secure both during transmission and when stored.
PHI includes patient names linked to health details. It also covers appointment dates that show treatment timelines.
This includes diagnoses, treatment plans, billing, and insurance information. Any health-related data that links to a specific person also qualifies as PHI. Even a simple email that includes a patient’s name and procedure date qualifies as PHI. It needs protection.
To follow HIPAA rules, you must encrypt emails while you send and store them. Only authorized users can access messages. Store messages safely, and record all communications in an audit trail. In addition, your email vendor must sign a BAA accepting responsibility for PHI protection.
Two parts of HIPAA apply directly to email: the Privacy Rule and the Security Rule.
The Privacy Rule determines when individuals can share PHI and who can access it. The Security Rule specifies the exact technical safeguards you must have in place. These safeguards include encryption during transmission and storage. They also involve strict user authentication measures.
The system logs every PHI-related message. We prevent changes to messages while they are in transit.
If your practice sends a lab result to the wrong email address, it is a significant error. This is especially true if someone does not encrypt the result. This is a reportable breach under HIPAA. In 2023, the Office for Civil Rights fined a clinic over $80,000 for sending unencrypted appointment reminders containing PHI.
SentSafe makes sure every email follows HIPAA rules automatically. This way, you don’t have to worry about compliance.
Private practice teams often default to general-purpose tools like Gmail, Outlook, or Yahoo because they’re easy to use. Unfortunately, these platforms are not HIPAA compliant out of the box.
Many practices fail to meet HIPAA standards because they:
Even one of these issues can lead to a costly violation. SentSafe makes HIPAA compliance a part of the system. You don’t have to remember or set it up.
A HIPAA compliant secure email service isn’t just about encryption. It must provide:
Non-compliance with HIPAA email requirements can devastate a small practice. Civil penalties range from $100 to $50,000 per violation, with annual maximums in the millions. In severe cases, criminal charges are possible.
Beyond fines, you may face breach notification costs, including mailing letters to affected patients and offering free credit monitoring. Also, the loss of trust exists — patients are less likely to return if they believe their personal information isn’t safe.
A small dental office in Florida had to pay $62,500. This was because they sent an unencrypted email with insurance IDs to the wrong patient. It wasn’t intentional, but HIPAA holds you accountable for safeguards, not intentions.
Some vendors claim to offer HIPAA compliant email but fall short when examined closely.
SentSafe designers created it for healthcare from the start. Every account includes a signed BAA. It offers end-to-end encryption, detailed audit logs, and PHI-safe settings by default.
In contrast, Gmail in its standard form is not healthcare-focused and offers no BAA unless you pay for Workspace. Even then, it requires technical setup for encryption and still lacks built-in audit logs.
Outlook can provide a BAA for some business plans. However, the system does not turn on encryption by default, and users face limited audit features.
Encryption plugins can help secure messages. However, they need manual setup. They do not work well with other systems. Often, they do not fully protect PHI.
SentSafe eliminates these gaps — compliance is always on.
With SentSafe, you can send referral letters that include diagnoses or provider details without worrying about exposure. You can safely send intake forms and pre-appointment packets. This helps new patients finish their paperwork before their first visit without any risk.
You can email post-visit treatment summaries directly to patients, replacing unsecured paper handouts. You can send billing disputes and payment receipts containing patient names or account information with confidence.
You can respond to patient record requests quickly and securely. You can also coordinate with your team about patient care. Additionally, you can send lab results or prescription updates directly to patients or pharmacies. We encrypt, log, and store every message according to HIPAA standards.
When you evaluate providers, check whether they include the BAA for free. Also, see how easy the system is for staff to learn. Finally, make sure it works well with your other tools.
Check for security features that exceed basic HIPAA standards. Make sure the platform can quickly provide compliance reports during an audit.
SentSafe meets all these criteria. It also offers HIPAA compliant mailing and check services from the same dashboard.
To send a HIPAA compliant email, log into your secure dashboard. Compose your message or choose from a patient-facing template. Attach any necessary files containing PHI, select your recipient, and hit send.
SentSafe encrypts the message, stores a complete audit log, and ensures the recipient accesses it through a secure channel. This means you can prove compliance instantly if ever questioned.
Many people believe Gmail is HIPAA compliant by default. In reality, it requires a paid Workspace account, manual configuration, and a signed BAA.
Another common myth is that encryption alone is enough. While encryption is critical, HIPAA also requires access controls, audit logs, and proper storage.
Some assume only large hospitals need HIPAA compliant email — but HIPAA applies to all covered entities, including small practices. While patients must provide consent for email communication, they still need proper safeguards.
SentSafe uses TLS encryption during transmission and AES-256 encryption for stored data. The team hosts data on HIPAA-compliant cloud infrastructure with redundancy and secure backups, ensuring no single point of failure.
Private practices shouldn’t have to choose between convenience and compliance. SentSafe makes sending HIPAA compliant email as easy as sending any other message — with the confidence that every safeguard is in place.
Book a demo or start your free trial at sentsafe.com and send your first HIPAA secure email in minutes.