Availity Emphasizes Cybersecurity and Business Continuity in Wake of Industry Cyberattack

The February cyberattack against the Change Healthcare clearinghouse not only compromised patient data but left health care providers in a financial crisis. Within 48 hours of the attack, another clearinghouse called Availity set up a free digital connectivity option for payers, providers, and third-party administrators to assist an industry in crisis. As a result of its efforts, Availity experienced a 40% increase in electronic transaction volume.

Availity had been planning for a crisis like that for some time. Mike Green, their Chief Information Security Officer, says in this video at the DirectTrust conference that they put effort not only into preventing attacks but in recovery—financially as well as technically. They run a test on their own service every quarter, bringing it down and restoring it within six hours. Krisi Hutson, Availity’s Senior Director, Solutions, said they’re the largest clearinghouse in health care today and their customers rely on the revenue that flows through their clearinghouse to run their practices effectively.  That’s why security and recovery are such an important part of what they do at Availity.

Hutson admits that security protocols can create annoyances, but points out that the consequences of a breach or attack is far worse. She advises organizations to install the necessary precautions: “Give your security team the space they need.”

Green describes defense-in-depth, which include encouraging users to report unusual activities, security measures such as immutable backups, and disaster recovery. He says that breaches have increased during the last few years and that the successes encourage other bad actors to enter the field. He believes that additional regulation is needed to make institutions implement security standards.

Hutson stresses communication, to let the security people know what each employee does and what happens if they lose access to their email, laptop, etc. Watch the video for details.

Learn more about Availty: https://www.availity.com/

Listen and subscribe to the Healthcare IT Today Interviews Podcast to hear all the latest insights from experts in healthcare IT.

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Tell us what you think. Contact us here or on Twitter at @hcitoday. And if you’re interested in advertising with us, check out our various advertising packages and request our Media Kit.

Availty is a proud sponsor of Healthcare Scene.

The February cyberattack against the Change Healthcare clearinghouse not only compromised patient data but left health care providers in a financial crisis. Within 48 hours of the attack, another clearinghouse called Availity set up a free digital connectivity option for payers, providers, and third-party administrators to assist an industry in crisis. As a result of its efforts, Availity experienced a 40% increase in electronic transaction volume.

Availity had been planning for a crisis like that for some time. Mike Green, their Chief Information Security Officer, says in this video at the DirectTrust conference that they put effort not only into preventing attacks but in recovery—financially as well as technically. They run a test on their own service every quarter, bringing it down and restoring it within six hours. Krisi Hutson, Availity’s Senior Director, Solutions, said they’re the largest clearinghouse in health care today and their customers rely on the revenue that flows through their clearinghouse to run their practices effectively.  That’s why security and recovery are such an important part of what they do at Availity.

Hutson admits that security protocols can create annoyances, but points out that the consequences of a breach or attack is far worse. She advises organizations to install the necessary precautions: “Give your security team the space they need.”

Green describes defense-in-depth, which include encouraging users to report unusual activities, security measures such as immutable backups, and disaster recovery. He says that breaches have increased during the last few years and that the successes encourage other bad actors to enter the field. He believes that additional regulation is needed to make institutions implement security standards.

Hutson stresses communication, to let the security people know what each employee does and what happens if they lose access to their email, laptop, etc. Watch the video for details.

Learn more about Availty: https://www.availity.com/

Listen and subscribe to the Healthcare IT Today Interviews Podcast to hear all the latest insights from experts in healthcare IT.

And for an exclusive look at our top stories, subscribe to our newsletter and YouTube.

Tell us what you think. Contact us here or on Twitter at @hcitoday. And if you’re interested in advertising with us, check out our various advertising packages and request our Media Kit.

Availty is a proud sponsor of Healthcare Scene.