The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is a federal law requiring healthcare providers to preserve the confidentiality and privacy of patients. This protection extends to telehealth meetings that take place between patients and healthcare professionals over video conferencing software. We reviewed a variety of video solutions advertised as HIPAA-compliant to learn which six are worth checking out and which is the best overall.
HIPAA-compliant Video Conferencing Software | Best For |
|---|---|
(Best Overall) Medical practitioners wanting an affordable solution with no meeting or time limit | |
Healthcare providers wanting a solution with a built-in phone system | |
Physicians’ offices needing video conferencing that integrates with medical devices | |
Small medical offices and solo practitioners needing an affordable solution with unlimited meetings | |
Medical organizations that host training sessions for large groups | |
Mental healthcare professionals needing a solution that includes medical billing tools |
How we Evaluated HIPAA-compliant Video Conferencing Software
The best HIPAA-compliant video conferencing software should, at the very least, meet the minimum safety standards outlined by the HIPAA Privacy Rule. It should offer multiple layers of security and provide meeting hosts with basic tools to control and terminate meetings. Compliant software should also be affordable and easy to use by both the medical practitioner and patients.
Therefore, the evaluation criteria we used to select the top video conferencing software includes:
- Meets the minimum necessary standard of the HIPAA Privacy Rule
- Ease of setup and use
- Price
- Robust encryption
- Easily accessible compliance documents for customers to review
- Ability to password-protect all meetings
- Meeting host has the ability to lock or terminate meetings, and to remove attendees
- Multilayer security
- Accessible on a variety of operating systems, browsers, and mobile devices
- Meetings are not listed publicly
Our research revealed GoToMeeting as the best overall choice of HIPAA-compliant video conferencing software. It employs numerous administrative, physical, and technical safeguards to protect patient data and gives healthcare providers complete control over online meetings and attendance. GoToMeeting is feature-rich and features unlimited meetings with no meeting duration limitations. Visit GoToMeeting today to sign up for a free trial.
Note: Federal HIPAA requirements are subject to change at any time. Please review your preferred video conferencing provider’s compliance documentation before signing up for an account to ensure it meets your healthcare organization’s needs.
GoToMeeting: Best Overall HIPAA-compliant Video Conferencing Software
GoToMeeting’s video conference dashboard (Source: GoToMeeting)
GoToMeeting is HIPAA-compliant video conferencing software that supports unlimited meetings with no time limits, with paid plans starting at $12 per host, per month. However, there is also a free plan that supports up to three people for meetings 40 minutes or shorter, making it ideal for brief follow-up appointments and short meetings.
GoToMeeting Pros | GoToMeeting Cons |
|---|---|
Unlimited meetings | Cloud recording and transcription only available with higher-level plan |
No meeting time limits with paid plans | Lacks robust host controls |
Custom meeting links | Difficult to send meeting invitations via email |
GoToMeeting Pricing
- Free: Supports up to three participants for 40-minute meetings
- Professional: $12 per host, per month; includes unlimited meetings with no time limit
- Business: $16 per host, per month; adds unlimited cloud recording and automatic transcription
- Free trial on paid plans: 14 days
GoToMeeting Features
- HD video
- Secure screen sharing
- Meeting lock
- Screen sharing
- In-meeting chat
- Dial-in by phone conference line
What We Like Most About GoToMeeting for Telemedicine
GoToMeeting has several useful features for medical health professionals, but its robust security features are where this solution really shines. Meetings are protected by unique access codes and restricted to invited participants only. As an additional layer of security, hosts can lock sessions so no one else can join and, if necessary, easily disconnect or terminate sessions already in progress.
To learn more about GoToMeeting’s video conferencing features and benefits, visit our GoToMeeting reviews page.
RingCentral: Best HIPAA-compliant Video Conferencing With Built-in Phone
RingCentral video conferencing (Source: RingCentral)
RingCentral is video conferencing software that meets HIPAA compliance requirements and features a built-in voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) business phone system. It features a team messaging tool as well as screen and file sharing to foster collaboration among medical workers for the best patient outcome. RingCentral is best for healthcare providers who want a ready-made meeting solution that includes its own phone system.
RingCentral Pros | RingCentral Cons |
|---|---|
Includes a built-in phone system | Lacks a permanently free plan |
Excellent video and call quality | Call recording can be unreliable |
Works on any device | May include more features than a healthcare provider needs |
RingCentral Pricing
- Essentials: $19.99 per user, per month; supports up to 20 users, includes unlimited calling
- Standard: $24.99 per user, per month; unlimited users, includes 24/7 support
- Premium: $34.99 per user, per month; includes automatic call recording and advanced call management
- Free trial on paid plans: 15 days
- Special offer: RingCentral is free for healthcare organizations, K-12 education, and select nonprofits through June 30, 2020
RingCentral Features
- HD video
- Screen sharing
- Team messaging
- File sharing
- Supports up to 200 meeting participants
- Integrates with Google Drive, Dropbox, and Box
- Comprehensive set of VoIP business phone features
What We Like Most About RingCentral for Telemedicine
RingCentral’s built-in phone system ensures that its video, call, and messaging tools work seamlessly together without the hassle of manually integrating them with each other. RingCentral’s administrative phone tools also make it easy to reassign extensions, reroute calls, and change user settings to provide continuity of care if a healthcare provider’s schedule suddenly changes.
For more information about RingCentral’s video conferencing and VoIP phone features, read our RingCentral reviews page.
Zoom: Best HIPAA-compliant Video Conferencing With Medical Device Integration
Diagnostic collaboration via Zoom video conferencing (Source: Zoom)
Zoom’s HIPAA-compliant video conferencing software is designed with healthcare providers in mind. It includes screen sharing and collaboration tools as well as a patient waiting room so providers can maintain patient privacy while seeing who’s waiting. Zoom’s software also integrates with medical devices, electronic health record (EHR) systems, and telehealth carts, making it best for medical practices that often connect to hospitals and patient health centers.
Zoom Pros | Zoom Cons |
|---|---|
Works even in low-bandwidth environments | Expensive |
Integrates with medical devices | Limited cloud storage |
Offers a service plan specifically designed for healthcare providers | Lacks international access support |
Zoom Pricing
- From $200 per HIPAA-enabled account; contact Zoom’s sales team for a quote
Zoom Features
- HD video
- Patient waiting room
- Secure collaboration tools
- Integrates with medical device technology
- Recorded session review
- Screen sharing
What We Like Most About Zoom for Telemedicine
Although Zoom is the most expensive option on our list, it’s worth the price for medical practices requiring a telehealth solution with integrations that enable them to assess patients using remote medical technology, like digital stethoscopes. For even better diagnostic views, it even offers far-end camera control, which allows hosts to pan, zoom, and tilt webcams that support this feature.
To read what Zoom customers have to say about this video conferencing solution, check out our Zoom reviews page.
UberConference: Best HIPAA-compliant Video Conferencing Software for Solo Practitioners
See all participants in an UberConference video call (Source: UberConference)
UberConference is a HIPAA-compliant video conferencing solution that supports unlimited meetings, international calling, and automatic call recording. Its paid plan offers a generous five-hour meeting time limit for up to 100 people. However, UberConference’s free plan supports longer secure meetings with more participants than other solutions on our list, making it ideal for solo healthcare practitioners and very small medical offices that offer short appointments.
UberConference Pros | UberConference Cons |
|---|---|
Unlimited meetings | Free plan limits meeting duration |
Dedicated dial-in phone number | Limited host call controls |
Supports international calling | Call quality can be spotty |
UberConference Pricing
- Free: Includes 45-minute meeting limit for up to 10 participants
- Business: $15 per host, per month; includes five-hour meeting limit for up to 100 participants
UberConference Features
- HD video
- Unlimited meetings
- Screen sharing
- Automatic call recording
- Conference lock
- Custom dial-in number
- International access for over 50 countries
What We Like Most About UberConference for Telemedicine
In addition to being an affordable solution to expensive telehealth software, UberConference also offers international meeting access from over 50 countries around the world. Participants save money on long-distance charges by calling into a local access number based on their location and entering the host’s unique conference number.
To find out more about how business owners and small teams use UberConference, head to our UberConference reviews page.
FreeConferenceCall.com: Best Video Conferencing Software for Healthcare In-service & Training
FreeConferenceCall.com facilitates online training and continuing education (Source: FreeConferenceCall.com)
FreeConferenceCall.com offers a free telehealth platform that supports video telemedicine conference calling. It features meeting recording, automatic transcripts, and breakout rooms for small group workshops and discussions. FreeConferenceCall.com supports meetings of up to 1,000 participants for free with no meeting time limit, making it ideal healthcare in-service training and continuing education.
FreeConferenceCall.com Pros | FreeConferenceCall.com Pros |
|---|---|
Supports very large meetings | Limited cloud storage |
Conference lock | Download required for screen sharing |
Free international dial-in numbers | Dated user interface |
FreeConferenceCall.com Pricing
- Free: Supports up to 1,000 participants and unlimited meetings of unlimited duration
FreeConferenceCall.com Features
- Breakout rooms for small group discussions
- Meeting recording
- Automatic transcripts with keyword search
- Conference lock
- Supports international calling
- Screen sharing
What We Like Most About FreeConferenceCall.com for Telemedicine
FreeConferenceCall.com’s unique breakout session feature is a big plus for medical offices that use this solution for training purposes. It allows hosts to distribute participants into up to four breakout conferencing rooms for workshopping or small-group discussions.
For more information about FreeConferenceCall.com’s service and features, read our FreeConferenceCall.com reviews page.
TheraNest: Best HIPAA-compliant Video Conferencing for Mental Health Professionals
TheraNest’s video conferencing dashboard (Source: TheraNest)
TheraNest is HIPAA-compliant video conferencing software designed for social workers, therapists, psychologists, and other mental health professionals. It features client self-scheduling and medical billing tools as well as integrated credit card processing. Video sessions support up to six participants and work across all platforms and devices with no client-side download required.
TheraNest Pros | TheraNest Pros |
|---|---|
Nothing for clients to download | Video meeting module costs extra |
Supports client self-scheduling | Lacks robust tech support |
Offers medical billing tools | Steep learning curve |
TheraNest Pricing
- Up to 30 clients: $39 per month
- Up to 40 clients: $50 per month
- Up to 50 clients: $60 per month
- 51 or more clients: Visit website for information
- Video conferencing module add-on: $10 per therapist, per month
- Free trial: 21 days
TheraNest Features
- Video module supports up to six participants
- Screen sharing
- Works across all devices and platforms
- Integrated credit card processing
- Create invoices and superbills in a few clicks
- Client note templates
What We Like Most About TheraNest for Telemedicine
TheraNest provides a turnkey solution for mental health professionals who need a video conferencing service that also manages billing, scheduling, and payment processing. TheraNest is especially helpful for medical professionals needing a full-spectrum service to accommodate clients while temporarily displaced from their physical offices due to remodeling or unforeseen circumstances.
You can learn more about this service’s pricing and benefits by visiting our TheraNest reviews page.
Bottom Line
Today’s healthcare providers need to provide multiple access channels for patients and colleagues to meet. HIPAA-compliant video conferencing software is an affordable and private solution that medical professionals can rely on to protect patient data and safety. It’s easy to use and accessible on nearly every computer and smartphone on the market.
Healthcare practitioners and medical offices that want to provide HIPAA-compliant video telehealth services should consider GoToMeeting. It offers unlimited meetings with no time limits and a dial-in by phone option for participants with no video access. Visit GoToMeeting to sign up for a free trial today.
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