Yes—it can be. But only if you set it up correctly. In the healthcare industry, data privacy isn’t optional—it’s the law. If you're using a CRM to manage patient interactions, appointment workflows, or follow-up campaigns, one question matters above all:
If you're considering—or already using—HubSpot, the answer is yes, but only if it's configured properly. In this guide, we'll break down what HubSpot is, why HIPAA compliance matters, how to make HubSpot secure for healthcare, and what you must do to stay protected.
HubSpot is a powerful, all-in-one customer relationship management (CRM) platform used to manage marketing, sales, service, and website data. It helps you connect with leads, automate communications, and track engagement—all from one place.
For healthcare providers and organizations, HubSpot can help streamline everything from appointment reminders to patient education journeys. But that power also comes with responsibility—especially when handling protected health information (PHI).
HIPAA—the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act—sets strict rules for handling patient data. Violations can lead to serious consequences, including:
Massive fines
Legal action
Loss of trust from patients
Most importantly, if your CRM stores or processes PHI, it must comply with HIPAA. That means encrypted data storage, strict user controls, audit logs, and a signed Business Associate Agreement (BAA) with your software provider.
Yes—but only certain parts of HubSpot are HIPAA compliant, and only when configured correctly. HubSpot offers a HIPAA-compliant environment with its Enterprise-level subscription and a signed BAA. But that’s just the first step. Out of the box, HubSpot is not fully compliant unless you take specific actions to protect PHI.
Here’s what matters:
You must sign a BAA with HubSpot
You need to limit access to sensitive data through permission settings
You must avoid using unencrypted fields to store PHI
You’ll need to turn off or customize certain features like email logging, chat transcripts, and form storage
Here’s a quick breakdown of how to make HubSpot work for healthcare:
Only Enterprise-level plans offer the necessary backend infrastructure to meet HIPAA requirements.
This is the legal foundation of HIPAA compliance. You must have a signed BAA with HubSpot before using it for any PHI.
Standard fields are not encrypted. Work with a developer or HubSpot partner (like us) to create secure custom properties for PHI.
HubSpot’s default behavior logs communications. You must disable or restrict this to avoid unintentional PHI storage.
Use role-based permissions to control who can view or edit sensitive records.
When storing PHI in HubSpot, follow these best practices:
Only use custom properties built for encrypted data
Make sure no PHI appears in subject lines or open email content
Disable auto-logging of emails, calls, and meetings where sensitive data is discussed
Regularly audit user permissions and workflows
Don’t use forms to collect PHI unless they’re integrated with secure, HIPAA-compliant platforms
Want to go deeper? We offer a full setup checklist and training to make sure your team stays compliant from day one.
HubSpot is a powerful tool for healthcare—but only if it’s set up the right way.
At LevelUp Digital, we specialize in configuring HIPAA-compliant HubSpot environments for healthcare practices, clinics, and medical SaaS platforms. From secure custom fields to airtight permission structures, we’ll help you use HubSpot to its fullest—without putting your organization at risk.
Get in touch with LevelUp—your patients (and your legal team) will thank you.