Paubox blog: HIPAA compliant email made easy

How HIPAA compliant email supports value-based health care (VBHC)

Written by Caitlin Anthoney | February 20, 2025

What is value-based health care (VBHC)?

VBHC is a transformative approach where patient results are prioritized over service volume. It helps healthcare organizations improve patient outcomes while optimizing costs.

Harvard Business School Press’s publication on redefining health care and creating value-based competition on results operationalizes VBHC into six inter-supporting components: 

  • "Organize care into Integrated Practice Units (IPUS), 
  • Measure outcomes and costs for every patient, 
  • Move to bundled payments for care cycles, 
  • Integrate care delivery across separate facilities, 
  • Expand excellent services across geography, 
  • Build an enabling information technology platform." 

However, achieving this transformation requires secure communication between healthcare providers, insurers, and billing departments. More specifically, these parties must use a HIPAA compliant email solution, like Paubox, to safeguard individuals’ protected health information (PHI) during exchanges and uphold federal regulations.

 

Benefits of using HIPAA compliant emails for VBHC

Improve care coordination in Integrated Practice Units (IPUs)

IPUs bring together multidisciplinary teams to provide comprehensive, patient-centered care. HIPAA compliant emails facilitate collaboration, allowing teams to share patient information, treatment plans, and test results while maintaining patient privacy.

So, cancer treatment centers, for example, can use HIPAA compliant emails to coordinate between oncologists, radiologists, and palliative care specialists, keeping each other in the loop on patient progress.

 

Facilitating secure outcome and cost measurement

VBHC requires healthcare providers to measure patient outcomes and costs systematically, sharing performance metrics, quality reports, and financial data among care teams and stakeholders. 

HIPAA compliant emails allow providers to securely share outcome metrics with data analysts who can assess treatment effectiveness and cost efficiency.

 

Streamlining communication for bundled payment models

Bundled payments can encourage providers to deliver cost-effective care across entire treatment cycles. However, the success of this model depends on effective communication between multiple healthcare providers, insurance companies, and billing departments. 

Providers must use a secure email solution, like Paubox, to exchange financial data, billing information, and reimbursement details, safeguarding patient PHI.

 

Supporting integrated care across separate facilities

Hospitals, outpatient clinics, and specialty care providers must collaborate to coordinate care. HIPAA compliant emails are proven to improve provider collaboration without exposing PHI during transmission or at rest.

 

Enabling geographic expansion

Expanding healthcare services across geographic regions often requires remote consultations, telehealth services, and data sharing between different locations. HIPAA compliant email helps providers exchange PHI, regardless of the distance between specialists and primary care providers.

So, a telemedicine provider can use HIPAA compliant emails to share diagnostic imaging and specialist recommendations with local doctors in underserved areas.

 

Building a secure IT infrastructure

HIPAA compliant email solutions use advanced security measures, like encryption, access controls, and audit trails to mitigate the risk of unauthorized PHI access or interception. Providers can also integrate these solutions with their electronic health records (EHR) system, giving them instant access to patient updates.

Ultimately, it is a secure IT platform that offers a reliable solution for exchanging health data and improving VBHC.

 

FAQs

Do providers need patient consent for HIPAA compliant emails?

Yes, a provider must get explicit patient consent before sharing their PHI through HIPAA compliant emails.

Learn more: A HIPAA consent form template that's easy to share

 

Are standard emails secure for discussing sensitive healthcare information?

No, standard emails do not provide the necessary encryption to protect sensitive healthcare information from potential breaches. So, providers must use a HIPAA compliant email platform, like Paubox, to safeguard patients' protected health information (PHI) during transmission and at rest.

 

Can AI be integrated into HIPAA compliant emails?

Yes, AI-powered features can be integrated with HIPAA compliant emailing platforms, like Paubox, to automate processes like patient consent management and send personalized emails while maintaining HIPAA compliance.