Patient Protect Releases Landmark Report on the Long-Term Cost of HIPAA Breaches for Small Healthcare Providers

In 2024, over 259 million Americans — roughly 81% of the population — had their protected health information (PHI) compromised. But while media coverage has focused on large hospital systems, a groundbreaking new report from Patient Protect reveals that small, independent medical practices are bearing the brunt of the damage — often without recovery.

The report, The Economics of ePHI Exposure: A Long-Term Impact Model of Healthcare Data Breaches, is the first of its kind to model breach-related losses over a 10-year horizon. It shows how practices without robust HIPAA compliance software or cybersecurity safeguards may face irreversible business consequences.

“We’ve seen providers close their doors after a single breach,” said Alexander Perrin, CEO of Patient Protect. “This isn’t just a compliance problem — it’s a financial crisis hiding in plain sight.”

Among the report’s key findings:

• The average cost of a healthcare data breach has reached $9.8 million — nearly twice as high as the cross-industry average of $4.45 million, according to industry reports
• 70% of patients say they would consider switching providers after a data breach
• Medical identity theft victims face $13,500 in average costs and 200+ hours of resolution
• Nearly half of small practices lack sufficient cyber insurance

The study introduces a free breach risk calculator, enabling practices to estimate long-term breach exposure based on size, insurance status, and technical posture.

“The healthcare industry must shift from checkbox compliance to real-time, proactive defense,” said Joe Perrin, CTO of Patient Protect. “Our HIPAA compliance platform is designed to help practices benchmark, improve, and protect — not just report.”

Patient Protect will host a live webinar on June 6 to walk through the research, cost model, and security roadmap. Registration is available now at:
www.patient-protect.com/research

Healthcare providers can also join the waitlist for Patient Protect’s upcoming HIPAA compliance software release, launching this summer.
www.patient-protect.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250603585797/en/

Legal Disclaimer:

EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.