Virtual mailboxes help busy healthcare professionals manage their physical mail and packages. It’s a huge convenience for anyone who needs to receive important mail but cannot do so for various reasons. Thus, receiving packages remotely offers flexibility, especially to those who are constantly on the move.
Given the sensitivity of healthcare documents, virtual mailboxes must comply with HIPAA rules. This list features the best virtual mailbox solutions that are HIPAA compliant.
Top 5 HIPAA-Compliant Virtual Mailbox Services:
Should Virtual Mailbox Services Comply With HIPAA?
Virtual mailbox services open your packages and notify you of deliveries. Unlike the US Postal Service or any traditional postal service, they do not quickly and temporarily transmit protected health information (PHI); they open your mail. Traditional postal services are categorized as services that fall under the HIPAA conduit exception, which means they don’t need to follow HIPAA rules.
However, virtual mailbox services do not fall under the conduit exception. They are considered business associates of covered entities. They may access your clients’ PHI to perform their jobs successfully. Because of this, HIPAA compliance is critical in any virtual mailbox service you subscribe to.
Here are some of the secure virtual mailbox services worth considering:
1. Thatch
Say goodbye to that pile of mail in your workplace. Thatch offers AI-powered features to help you go through your mail quickly. Integrated with ChatGPT, this service summarizes your inbound mail for you. They also scan your packages and notify you of deliveries. Thatch also offers a phone system, fax number, team email, and a virtual mailbox in its Bundle plan.
Thatch allows you to:
- Quickly search your mail history in high-resolution PDFs
- Combine your packages and forward them to any address
- Track your forwarded mail and packages online
- Request for secure shredding and recycling of your physical mail
- Check delivery information such as delivery dates, scan dates, and upload dates
- Avail of an actual business address for your professional transactions
Price per month:
- Virtual Mailbox: $45
- Bundle: $60
- Outbound Mail add-ons: $0-$23.95
- Free trial: 7 days
2. Virtual Post Mail
Virtual Post Mail (VPM) has offered virtual mailboxes, including scanning and forwarding, since 2009. Today, VPM operates in four states: California, Nevada, Delaware, and Florida. To protect sensitive data, VPM hosts its data on Amazon Web Services, a HIPAA-compliant infrastructure. It also provides SSL encryption, hashed passwords, and two-factor authentication. HIPAA compliance is available for users on Business and Premium plans.
With Virtual Post Mail, you can:
- Forward deposit checks to your bank
- Forward your packages to any address
- Enjoy the benefits of a registered agent to receive official mail on your behalf
- Get real-time notifications on important documents
- Request for mail scanning and have it done within six hours
- Request for on-site mail shredding
Price per month:
- Business: $60
- Premium: $90
- Free Trial: NA
3. Second Street Offices
Second Street Offices is not strictly a virtual mailbox but offers virtual office and mailbox services. The company advertises private day offices for hourly and daily rent. The business also provides a monthly virtual mailbox for HIPAA compliance. You only need to contact them on their website for a virtual mailbox request. It’s convenient for those who need a temporary physical office and mail-scanning services.
Second Street Offices’ virtual mailbox offers:
- Unlimited letter scanning
- Mail forwarding
- Double-encrypted and password-protected portal for your mail
- HIPAA-compliant document shredding upon request
- 8 hours per month rent space with receipt
Price per month:
- Virtual Mailbox: $59
4. SecureScan
SecureScan has been in business for more than two decades. It offers a digital mailroom service for automated mail processing and uploading to secure digital storage or your own document management system. SecureScan uses a secure, restricted facility with 24/7 surveillance and a 14-camera system. Each employee undergoes a background check and is trained extensively to handle PHI. Note that this virtual digital mailbox provider repeatedly asserts HIPAA compliance on its site but does not mention offering a business associate agreement. Make sure to ask about this first before availing of their service.
SecureScan’s services include:
- Receiving and sorting mail on your behalf
- Digital conversion of large volumes of physical files into high-resolution formats
- Regular or one-time NAID AAA-certified mobile shredding service on your premises
- Legal, medical, HR, government, and accountant records scanning to help you retrieve large volumes of paperwork
Price:
- Request for a quote
5. Stable
If you’re looking for a trusted HIPAA-compliant virtual mailbox, try Stable. Trusted by many companies, Stable is also SOC 2 compliant, showing its commitment to data security. It offers end-to-end encryption, access monitoring, data backups, and data deletion. It also uses Amazon Web Services for its infrastructure. You just have to request a BAA from Stable if you need HIPAA compliance.
With Stable’s virtual mailbox, you can:
- Scan, track, and categorize digital mail, which you can view from the Stable dashboard
- Automatically deposit checks
- Receive packages from carriers like USPS, FedEx, DHL, and UPS
- Avail of a permanent business address that you can use for official transactions
- Request for secure mail and package shredding
- Get real-time notifications when you receive, scan, or forward mail
- Invite team members to collaborate on business mail
Price per month:
- Grow: $49
- Scale: $89
- Custom
Look for HIPAA-Compliant Virtual Mailbox Services
Finding a virtual mailbox that’s HIPAA compliant isn’t easy. Many mail services imply or say that they adhere to HIPAA compliance standards. However, without a BAA, you cannot consider these services HIPAA compliant.
Look for a HIPAA-compliant virtual mailbox tool that will sign a BAA with you. They should also include advanced security features that can prevent unpermitted disclosures and breaches. Know that data privacy, security, and confidentiality are necessary if you work in healthcare or any industry that handles sensitive information.
