How HealthPay Achieved HIPAA Compliance in 4 Months
A fintech startup went from zero healthcare customers to signing three major health systems—unlocking $5M in new revenue.
Key Results
Company Overview
The Challenge
HealthPay had built an innovative payment platform for medical practices, but their growth had hit a ceiling. Small private practices loved the product, but large health systems—where the real revenue opportunity existed— wouldn't even start a conversation without HIPAA compliance documentation.
The challenge was twofold: they needed both HIPAA compliance (required for handling Protected Health Information) and SOC 2 certification (required by hospital IT security teams). Their head of compliance had spent months researching consultants, but the quotes were staggering: $40K-$60K for HIPAA alone, with additional costs for SOC 2, and timelines stretching 12-18 months. For a Series A startup with aggressive growth targets, this was unacceptable.
Making matters worse, they had signed a pilot agreement with a major Texas health system—but the contract had a 4-month deadline to provide HIPAA compliance documentation or the deal would terminate. With their biggest opportunity on the line and traditional consultants quoting 12+ month timelines, they needed a radically different approach.
"We had four months to become HIPAA compliant or lose our biggest deal. Every consultant told us it was impossible. Traditional vendors wanted $60K and quoted 12-18 months. We were prepared to lose the contract when our investor introduced us to LowerPlane."
The Solution
HealthPay partnered with LowerPlane to achieve dual HIPAA and SOC 2 compliance in just 4 months—meeting their critical deadline and unlocking the healthcare market.
Week 1: Multi-Framework Assessment
- Comprehensive readiness assessment for both HIPAA and SOC 2 frameworks
- Identified 75% control overlap between frameworks—efficiency opportunity
- Connected AWS, Google Workspace, PagerDuty, GitHub integrations
- Created 16-week roadmap aligned to health system deadline
Week 2-8: HIPAA-Specific Controls & Documentation
- Implemented PHI data classification and encryption controls
- Created Business Associate Agreements (BAA) for all vendors handling PHI
- Established breach notification procedures and incident response plan
- Documented access controls, audit logging, and data retention policies
- Conducted HIPAA privacy and security training for all employees
Week 9-16: SOC 2 Audit & Final Validation
- Completed remaining SOC 2 controls (many already satisfied by HIPAA work)
- Automated evidence collection for continuous compliance monitoring
- Passed SOC 2 Type 1 audit with zero findings
- Delivered HIPAA compliance documentation package to health system—3 days before deadline
- Passed health system's security audit on first attempt
The Results
"LowerPlane saved our company. We were three weeks from losing our biggest opportunity when we started. Their multi-framework approach was brilliant—75% of the work applied to both HIPAA and SOC 2, so we got dual compliance for barely more than the cost of one. We passed the health system's security audit with zero findings, and their procurement team was impressed by how comprehensive our documentation was. Within two months of compliance, we had signed three health systems totaling $5M in ARR. That pilot customer? They just expanded to all 47 of their facilities. LowerPlane didn't just check a compliance box—they unlocked our entire go-to-market strategy."
Key Takeaways
Multi-framework approach maximizes efficiency
HIPAA and SOC 2 have 75-80% control overlap. By tackling both simultaneously, HealthPay saved time and money compared to sequential implementation. One set of evidence satisfied multiple frameworks.
HIPAA is achievable on aggressive timelines
Traditional consultants quote 12-18 months for HIPAA, but with focused prioritization and automation, HealthPay achieved compliance in 4 months—proving that speed doesn't compromise quality when done right.
Healthcare buyers scrutinize security deeply
Health systems conduct rigorous security audits beyond just checking for HIPAA certification. Having comprehensive documentation, automated evidence, and SOC 2 as a secondary validation point gave HealthPay instant credibility.
Compliance unlocks entire market segments
Before HIPAA compliance, HealthPay could only sell to small practices. After compliance, they immediately closed 3 health systems and built a pipeline of 12 more—fundamentally changing their revenue trajectory and company valuation.
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