HIPAA-Compliant IT for
Healthcare Organizations
PHI is among the most regulated data in existence. Lewis IT builds and manages the IT infrastructure that keeps your organization compliant, your patients’ data protected, and your operations running — so your clinical team can focus on care.
The HIPAA Compliance Framework
HIPAA isn’t a single rule — it’s a layered set of requirements that touch every aspect of how your organization handles protected health information.
Privacy Rule PHI Use & DisclosureGoverns who can access protected health information and under what circumstances it can be disclosed. Applies to all covered entities and their business associates. | Security Rule Electronic PHI SafeguardsRequires administrative, physical, and technical safeguards to protect electronic PHI. This is where most IT compliance work lives — access controls, encryption, audit logs, and risk assessments. | Breach Notification 60-Day Notification RuleRequires covered entities to notify affected patients, HHS, and in some cases media within 60 days of discovering a breach. Without a documented incident response plan, meeting this deadline is nearly impossible. | Business Associates BAA RequirementsAny vendor with access to PHI — including your IT provider — must sign a Business Associate Agreement. Lewis IT executes BAAs as standard practice with every healthcare client. |
OCR Enforcement: The HHS Office for Civil Rights actively investigates HIPAA complaints and conducts random audits. Fines range from $100 to $50,000 per violation, with an annual maximum of $1.9 million per violation category. The most common findings: missing risk assessments, no BAAs with vendors, and unencrypted devices containing PHI.
Sound Familiar?
Healthcare organizations in Southern Maryland share the same IT pain points. Here’s what we see most often.
Legacy Systems Holding PHI With No EncryptionOlder EHR systems, practice management software, and Windows machines that haven’t been updated in years are storing patient data with no encryption at rest. An OCR auditor asking for a risk assessment will flag this immediately. | No Signed BAA With Your IT ProviderIf your current IT provider has access to systems containing PHI and hasn’t signed a Business Associate Agreement, you’re already in violation. This is one of the most common findings in HHS audits of small practices. |
Staff Emailing PHI in Plain TextClinical and administrative staff sending patient records, lab results, and referrals via unencrypted email is a daily HIPAA violation at most small practices. Each transmission is a potential breach notification event. | No Documented Risk AssessmentThe HIPAA Security Rule requires covered entities to conduct and document a risk analysis. It’s one of the first things OCR asks for during an investigation — and the most common citation when it’s missing. |
Remote Work After COVID Expanded the Attack SurfaceBilling staff, coders, and administrative personnel working from home are accessing PHI on personal devices over unsecured home networks — often without VPN, encryption, or MFA. | Ransomware Targeting Small PracticesHealthcare is the most targeted sector for ransomware. Small practices without enterprise-grade security are prime targets — and a successful ransomware attack triggers automatic HIPAA breach notification requirements. |
How We Keep You HIPAA Compliant
Every service we deliver to healthcare organizations is built around the HIPAA Security Rule’s administrative, physical, and technical safeguard requirements.
Business Associate AgreementWe sign a BAA with every healthcare client as a standard part of our engagement. You’ll never be out of compliance because of your IT provider. | Risk Assessment & DocumentationWe conduct and document your HIPAA risk analysis, identifying where PHI lives, how it moves, and where it’s at risk — the foundation of your compliance program. | Encrypted CommunicationsEncrypted email and secure patient portals for all PHI transmission — eliminating the daily violations created by plain-text email workflows. |
Endpoint Encryption & ProtectionFull-disk encryption and advanced threat detection on every device that touches PHI — including laptops used by remote billing and coding staff. | Access Controls & Audit LogsRole-based access to PHI with full audit logging — so you can demonstrate minimum necessary access and produce the access reports OCR requests during investigations. | Incident Response PlanA documented breach response procedure designed to meet the 60-day HHS notification window — so when an incident occurs, you’re not figuring out the process under pressure. |
Common Use Cases
HIPAA Risk Assessment
PHI Encryption
EHR Security
Encrypted Email
Access Controls
Audit Logging
Incident Response Plan
Remote Work Security
Ransomware Protection
Staff Security Training
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you sign a Business Associate Agreement?
Yes — this is non-negotiable and we sign one with every healthcare client. If your current IT provider hasn’t signed a BAA, you’re already out of compliance. We’ll provide the agreement as part of our standard onboarding.
What types of healthcare organizations do you work with?
We work with covered entities and business associates — including medical practices, dental offices, behavioral health providers, physical therapy practices, home health agencies, medical billing companies, and other healthcare-adjacent organizations that handle PHI.
Can you work alongside our existing EHR system?
Yes. We work around your existing clinical software — EHR, practice management, billing platforms. Our job is to secure the environment your systems operate in, not replace them. We also help ensure your EHR vendor has appropriate safeguards and BAAs in place.
What is a HIPAA risk assessment and do we need one?
A HIPAA risk assessment is a documented evaluation of the threats and vulnerabilities to PHI in your environment. Yes — every covered entity is required to have one under the Security Rule. It’s also the first thing OCR requests when investigating a complaint or conducting an audit.
What happens if we have a breach?
Your incident response plan — which we build and maintain — provides the documented procedure for containing the breach, assessing scope, and meeting the 60-day HHS notification requirement. We coordinate the technical response and help you document the incident for regulatory purposes.
HIPAA Compliance Starts with a Conversation
Get a free 30-minute IT assessment. We’ll review your current environment, identify HIPAA compliance gaps, and tell you exactly what needs to be addressed — no obligation, no sales pitch.