Key points: In 2025, Artificial Intelligence will continue to transform healthcare, HHS proposed strengthened HIPAA security rule to protect the security of individuals’ protected health information, and cybersecurity will be a top priority for the healthcare industry.
Happy 2025! Let’s take a moment to look back at 2024 and share some thoughts on changes, updates, and what to expect for healthcare in 2025.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to rock the healthcare scene as its transformative power is forcing healthcare organizations to redefine how they approach technology. In 2025, the focus will be on technology that delivers measurable outcomes.
We should be prepared for even more rapid progress in AI’s capabilities to transform healthcare, with adoption of AI by more organizations. “Three-quarters of U.S. healthcare providers and payers increased their IT spending this past year, with artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and IT infrastructure among the chief areas of investment, according to a study by Bain & Company and KLAS Research. Adoption of AI is gaining traction, with 15% of providers and 25% of payers reporting an established AI strategy in 2024, the report said.” (source: https://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/trends-2025-ai-healthcare-progressing-despite-reimbursement-hurdles)
2024 was another record-breaking year for cyberattacks, and the healthcare industry still is a prime target for cybercrime. “As of Dec. 20, 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights’ HIPAA Breach Reporting Tool website lists a total of 677 major health data breaches affecting more than 182.4 million people so far in 2024.”
The most alarming healthcare data breach was the February 2024 cyberattack on Change Healthcare, the IT services unit of UnitedHealth Group, with 100 million individuals affected. (source: https://www.govinfosecurity.com/how-healthcare-cyberattacks-broke-records-in-2024-a-27116)
In response to the growing threat of healthcare cyberattacks, HHS and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to modify the Security Standards for the Protection of Electronic Protected Health Information under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009.
It’s the first HIPAA Security Rule update since 2013 and it would require HIPAA-covered entities to encrypt ePHI with few exceptions, implement multifactor authentication and inventory its technology assets. (source: https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/top-15-largest-us-healthcare-provider-data-breaches-2024)
It is an exciting time, and 2025 will be a year with all kinds of changes and trends that come with the ongoing evolution of healthcare and health IT. Strengthening healthcare cybersecurity must be on top of the list for 2025.
As AI operates with vast amounts of sensitive health data, healthcare organizations have some work to do regarding establishing basic rules related to data privacy and security, as well as legal issues.
We at Primeau continue to do our best to provide excellent service and innovative solutions to help improve healthcare and ensure seamless #AI compliance with AIRMAP, a comprehensive AI assessment tool for administrative, clinical, and financial areas, designed to support risk management and data governance.
For more information on AIRMAP and how Primeau can assist you, visit www.primeauconsultinggroup.com
Resources:
https://www.govinfosecurity.com/how-healthcare-cyberattacks-broke-records-in-2024-a-27116
https://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/trends-2025-ai-healthcare-progressing-despite-reimbursement-hurdles
https://www.healthcareitnews.com/news/top-15-largest-us-healthcare-provider-data-breaches-2024
