Vetting Your Vendors

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1. Who Are “Vendors”?

In a dental practice, vendors aren’t just supply reps. They’re the outside companies you bring in to run critical parts of your business — from IT support and marketing/website developers, to third-party apps that connect to your practice management system (PMS).

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➡️Translation: if they touch patient data, they’re part of your risk picture.

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2. Why BAAs Matter (and Who’s Who)

Under HIPAA, a Covered Entity (CE) is your dentalpractice. A Business Associate (BA) is any vendor that creates, receives, maintains, or transmits Protected Health Information (PHI) on your behalf.

That means:

• You (the practice) are always on the hook for compliance.
• Your vendor (the BA) must sign a Business Associate Agreement (BAA), committing to safeguard PHI and flow those requirements down to any subcontractors.

💡 Pro tip: No signed BAA = 🚩. Without it, your practice carries the liability if there’s a breach.

3. The 3 Questions to Ask Every Vendor Before Hiring

       1. Do you sign a BAA with the primary vendor—and can you provide a copy or confirmation?
       Why it matters: This proves they’re taking HIPAA obligations seriously,not leaving you exposed.

       2. Do you maintain independent cybersecurity protocols (MFA, encryption, etc.)?
       Why it matters: Multi-factor authentication and encryption are frontline defenses. If they don’t have them, your patient data may be a sitting duck.

       3. What is your breach notification process and timeline?
       Why it matters: You don’t want to be the last to know when the fire alarm is already blaring. Quick notice = faster damage control.

✅ Bottom Line

Vetting vendors isn’t optional — it’s part of protecting your practice and your patients. Asking the right questions now can save you from headaches (and HIPAA penalties) later.

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Darkhorse Dental IT Is Here For You

We understand that caring for your patients is your top priority. Dealing with a computer issue, slow IT response time or HIPAA compliance requirements just aren’t high on your list of to-do’s. That’s where Darkhorse Dental Tech comes in. Our team of Dental IT specialists are experts when it comes to running a great, secure and successful practice —and so much more. Whether you’re looking for IT services for startups, or existing support and security services for your practice, Darkhorse can do it all for you, so you can get back to your patients.

Have questions? Looking for ideas? Just want to talk teeth? Drop us a line at sales@darkhorsetech.com to get the conversation started! Or head to our Contact page to send us a message. Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram!

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