Holding steady in the No. 1 spot, the healthcare industry has held the top rank in IBM’s Cost of Data Breach report for the past 11 years. It’s a lead that seems secure. In just a year from 2020-2021, the average total cost for healthcare for an event increased 29.5% and now sits at $9.23 million.
Even amidst that threat landscape, the percentage those in the healthcare space spend on cybersecurity hasn’t climbed out of the single digits. Only 6% or less of the IT budget is typically allocated for cybersecurity, according to HIMSS’ 2020 Cybersecurity Survey. Not helping the cause is that security spending is competing against even more tech priorities for attention. Data from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) shows that healthcare organizations planned to increase their budgets for cybersecurity in 2021, but that cybersecurity spending could play second fiddle to technology projects vital for patient service in a post-COVID world.
Given all this, a statement in a report issued by the HHS Cybersecurity Task Force in 2017 holds all too true today: “Within the healthcare industry, cybersecurity has historically been viewed as an IT challenge, is approached reactively, and is often not seen as a solution that can help protect the patient.”
There are lots of complexities to navigate when it comes to healthcare cybersecurity. But on a basic level, to elevate the cybersecurity conversation and move it forward, IT needs a partner, and revenue cycle management makes a good one. This is because revenue cycle management has significant experience implementing processes and technology around PCI DSS compliance, and has learned lessons that lend themselves well to framing cybersecurity priorities.
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Given all this, a statement in a report issued by the HHS Cybersecurity Task Force in 2017 holds all too true today: “Within the healthcare industry, cybersecurity has historically been viewed as an IT challenge, is approached reactively, and is often not seen as a solution that can help protect the patient.”
There are lots of complexities to navigate when it comes to healthcare cybersecurity. But on a basic level, to elevate the cybersecurity conversation and move it forward, IT needs a partner, and revenue cycle management makes a good one. This is because revenue cycle management has significant experience implementing processes and technology around PCI DSS compliance, and has learned lessons that lend themselves well to framing cybersecurity priorities.
Source: Hitconsultant