3 reasons health-tech companies choose HITRUST over SOC 2 to accelerate sales and avoid fines:
1. Scalability
HITRUST offers certifications at 4 different levels:
-> e1
-> i1
-> r2
-> AI
As your firm grows, so will its security needs.
An early e1 certification addresses customers concerns from the start without a massive compliance program.
You can "graduate" to i1 or r2 to show greater maturity as you store and process more sensitive data like protected health information (PHI).
And if you are developing artificial intelligence products, the AI security certification is a purpose-built, externally-assessable framework.
With SOC 2 you can get Type I or II attestations (not certifications) on control design (that's all for Type I) and operating effectiveness (Type II).
You could expand the Trust Services Criteria [TSC] (security, confidentiality, processing integrity, availability, and privacy) reviewed, but customers (and many SOC 2-audited companies) don't understand what these mean.
HITRUST's structure is well-known in the healthcare industry, making enterprise sales easier.
2. Flexibility
HITRUST (as of version 11.4) maps to 61 authoritative sources, which allows you to demonstrate compliance with laws and regulations like HIPAA's rules for:
-> Privacy
-> Security
-> Breach notification
There are few ways to guarantee safe harbor from regulatory action through external certification, but having an outside expert check your work is the next best way to avoid it.
SOC 2 attestations focus on the TSC and don't look at specific regulatory requirements. For example, even if you get attested for the privacy TSC, that doesn't mean the auditor is saying you are GDPR or CCPA compliant.
3. Quantified results
Organizations with HITRUST certifications reported a 0.59% incident rate in 2024.
Conversely, Munich Re's Global Cyber Risk and Insurance Survey for 2024 found 47% of the interviewed participants (out of 7,500) had suffered one.
While compliance isn't security, security often IS compliance. Without a breach to investigate in the first place, the likelihood of expensive fines are low.
Separately, some cyber insurers offer a 25% credit to r2-certified organizations because of the reduced risk.
No data exists for either breach rates or insurance discounts for SOC 2-attested companies.
TL;DR - Health-tech companies should look at HITRUST over SOC 2 because of its:
1. Scalability
2. Flexibility
3. Quantified results
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