HIPAA Compliance for First Class Mail and USPS Marketing Mail

Healthcare organizations that send patient bills, test reports and other medical information need to follow the HIPAA guidelines to ensure that they are sending these communications in a secure manner. This includes email and fax security, as well as U.S. mail, which requires a signed BAA from the provider that is receiving the PHI.

The First Class mail class gets its name because it’s a fast and reliable option for time-sensitive or personalized messages like invoices, statements, credit cards and other transactional mail. But if you’re mailing non-time-sensitive generic letters and notices, you can send them as Standard Mail (aka Marketing Mail) to save on postage costs.

USPS Marketing Mail is often used for marketing campaigns. It’s less expensive than First Class Mail but can take up to three weeks to deliver. But it’s not as flexible as First Class Mail and is not recommended for personal correspondence, invoices and other business documents.

Unlike first class mail, USPS Marketing Mail isn’t delivered as addressed and is not forwarded or returned to the sender unless requested with an ancillary service endorsement. In addition, it may cost more to ship via USPS Marketing Mail than first class.

What Are the HIPAA Compliance Requirements for Email and Fax?

In addition to the hipaa privacy rule applied to covered entities , healthcare entities also need to comply with the privacy regulations that apply to their electronic records and communications. These regulations include encrypting email, ensuring that the data is stored in a secure location, and signing BAAs with fax machine vendors.