Citrix Debuts the Citrix ShareFile Cloud for Healthcare

Citrix announced the Citrix ShareFile Cloud for Healthcare, a dedicated virtual private cloud for protected health information.

Under the Omnibus Final Rule (Omnibus Rule) update to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), with a compliance deadline of Sept. 23, businesses that process or store protected health information (PHI) are subject to enhanced compliance regulations. In response, Citrix has updated its architecture to provide enhanced segregation and security for Citrix ShareFile customers who need to safeguard PHI.

"Healthcare organizations need solutions in place that will help them protect confidential information from unintentional exposure and remain in compliance with the latest rules," said Maribel Lopez, Founder, Lopez Research. "Healthcare needs solutions like dedicated virtual private clouds for protected health information."

A majority of business associates reported being somewhat or completely unaware of their new responsibilities under the Omnibus Rule, according to a survey1 conducted by Coalfire, an independent information technology Governance, Risk and Compliance (IT GRC) firm, released in September. Fewer than half of business associates reported they are compliant with the Omnibus Rule.

Assessed to protect data in technical compliance with the HIPAA Security Rule by information security firm Sword & Shield Enterprise Security, Inc., the ShareFile Cloud for Healthcare is unique in that it segments out healthcare customer data into a separate secure enclave to store or process PHI. Typically, organizations migrate PHI from on-premise storage to their own private cloud. The new ShareFile Cloud for Healthcare will help organizations reduce costs and help support their compliance with HIPAA requirements.

"I can't risk sending files through a consumer cloud service. I need to have a rock-solid platform that supports HIPAA compliance," said Matthew Sohn, Founder & CEO, Mission Benefits. "So for us, the ShareFile Cloud for Healthcare is the next big thing - giving us a quick and secure way to access, share and collaborate with clients, carriers and partners everywhere."

According to a release, ShareFile has been a secure file-sharing solution of choice among healthcare organizations, signing business associate agreements since January 2012. Adoption of ShareFile has accelerated within the healthcare market, growing 137 percent in the past year.

As described by the company, with ShareFile, organizations subject to HIPAA can:

-Safely share PHI with multiple people across an organization

-Quickly and securely send large image files (CAT scans, X-rays, DICOM etc.) over private and public networks

-Archive research and sensitive files in a central location for teams and organizations to access

-Save time by no longer faxing documents and following up by phone to confirm receipt

"We're doubling down on the healthcare industry given tremendous interest from health organizations in streamlining how information is stored, shared and managed," said Jesse Lipson, VP & GM, Data Sharing, Citrix. "Respecting our customers' privacy and compliance needs while simplifying content collaboration puts us in a differentiated position in the market."

The ShareFile Cloud for Healthcare is available now.

Citrix is a cloud company that enables mobile workstyles, helping people to work and collaborate from anywhere, securely accessing apps and data on any of the latest devices.

More Information:

http://www.sharefile.com

http://www.citrix.com

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