GetResponse is not HIPAA compliant for uses that involve protected health information because it does not offer a Business Associate Agreement for HIPAA Covered Entities or Business Associates, so it should not be used to create, receive, maintain, or transmit protected health information through email marketing, automation, landing pages, or contact management.
A Business Associate Agreement is required when a vendor performs functions or services for a regulated entity that involve protected health information. Email marketing and marketing automation platforms typically store recipient email addresses, subscriber attributes used for segmentation, message content, engagement analytics, and workflow logic. Those data elements become protected health information when they identify an individual and relate to healthcare services, payment, or health status. Without a Business Associate Agreement, using GetResponse to send or manage patient communications that involve protected health information creates an impermissible disclosure and an unsupported vendor relationship under HIPAA.
Protected health information exposure can occur even when message content looks generic. A list built from a patient registry, a portal export, an appointment schedule, or a billing system can be protected health information because it reflects a relationship to healthcare services. Tags and segmentation fields such as service line, clinic location, appointment type, diagnosis group, procedure group, or payment status can convert contact records and campaign logic into protected health information. Tracking and analytics features can also generate identifiable engagement records connected to healthcare outreach.
The HIPAA Privacy Rule regulates marketing communications that use protected health information and requires an individual authorization in many cases, subject to specific exceptions and conditions. Authorization requirements do not replace the operational controls required by the HIPAA Security Rule for electronic protected health information or the contractual requirement to have a Business Associate Agreement in place when a third party handles protected health information on behalf of a regulated entity.
GetResponse can be used only for communications designed to exclude protected health information from all data stored or transmitted through the platform. That limitation requires controls that prevent uploading patient-derived lists, prevent storing patient identifiers or care-related attributes in contact records, prevent message content that references an individual’s care or payment details, and prevent use of forms or landing pages that collect protected health information. When protected health information is required for targeted outreach, appointment communications, care management messaging, or similar functions, a HIPAA-aligned email service that supports a Business Associate Agreement is required.