Big news in the digital health industry this week! Amazon has made the Alexa – which has the largest market share of all digital voice assistants – HIPAA compliant. Intelligent Voice interactions on devices like the Alexa are naturally suited for healthcare, however, creating applications for Alexa couldn’t be done until now. That’s because most health-related technology applications that use personal health information are subject to the data privacy and security requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). These requirements are extremely stringent about patient data and help ensure that some of our most sensitive consumer information is kept private.
So HIPAA compliant digital voice assistants are a game-changer for the industry, and we are looking forward to finally delivering on some of the proofs of concepts (POCs) that we’ve been developing with our healthcare and life sciences/pharmaceuticals clients. While Amazon is launching with six healthcare development partners initially, they plan to grow that number quickly in the coming months, and we plan to be right there as the capabilities grow.
Years from now, we may look back and say that Amazon’s announcement ushered in a new “internet for healthcare” age. The possibilities of using voice for healthcare is massive. HIPAA has been the major hindrance, and the most significant player in the industry has just opened a massive door to the other side.
For more information and to suggest what skills Amazon should develop next, visit: amazon developer
Alternatively, read more with our partner Orbita about why Alexa becoming HIPAA compliant is such a breakthrough: orbita amazon
Or contact us to discuss how you can use design thinking and voice assistants like Alexa to create incredible patient and HCP experiences.