Alaap Shah, an Associate in the Health Care and Life Sciences practice, in the Washington, DC, office, and Ali Lakhani, a Law Clerk in the Health Care and Life Sciences practice, in the Washington, DC, office, co-wrote an article titled "The Good, Bad And Ugly of HIPAA-Compliant Texting." (Read the full version — subscription required.)
Following is an excerpt:
There is no doubt that mobile devices are revolutionizing the way health care is delivered. Specifically, text messaging via mobile devices has the potential to deliver valuable benefits such as increased patient engagement and increased efficiency in care delivery.
Yet, text messaging also carries with it several privacy and security compliance risks. As health care companies contemplate how to best leverage texting, information security should remain a key focus in light of recent upticks in mobile device data breaches and a concomitant rise in Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act enforcement.