Dental Practice Newsletters: Ideas, HIPAA and What to Leave Out
By: Kazushi Inui (Newsletter Ready) ・ Last updated:
A dental practice newsletter keeps patients connected between visits: oral health tips, news about the practice, new services and holiday hours. Because the people on your list are patients, HIPAA's rules on marketing and safeguards apply in ways they don't for most small businesses. This page covers what to send and what to keep out of a newsletter.
Why dental newsletters stall
The schedule is full, the front desk is busy and nobody owns the newsletter. When it does go out, it's often a one-off promotion rather than something patients look forward to.
If your website has a blog or news page with care tips and practice updates, those posts can become the newsletter. Each item has already been reviewed once.
Newsletter ideas already on your website
- Oral health tips: brushing and flossing, children's teeth, sports mouthguards, sensitivity
- New services or equipment at the practice
- New dentists, hygienists and team members
- Answers to common questions about insurance, payment options or first visits
- Office hours, holiday closures and how to reach you after hours
- Community events and school visits
- A reminder to use dental benefits before they reset, if your patients' plans run on the calendar year
How often to send and how to structure an issue
Monthly or every other month is plenty. Individual appointment and recall reminders are separate messages, not part of the newsletter.
A typical issue has one care tip, one piece of practice news and a clear way to book. Keep it general so it works for every patient on the list.
What HIPAA says about practice newsletters
HIPAA applies to dentists who are covered entities, which HHS describes as providers that transmit health information electronically in connection with a standard transaction such as an insurance claim.
Under the Privacy Rule, "marketing" means a communication that encourages people to buy or use a product or service, and it generally requires the patient's written authorization. Communications describing your own health-related products or services are excluded from that definition, unless a third party pays you to make them. HHS gives the example of a provider using its patient list to announce a new specialty or new equipment through a general mailing.
Promoting another company's products is different. If a manufacturer or other third party pays you to promote its product to your patients, that is marketing and needs authorization that states the payment is involved.
Keep patient information out of the newsletter
- Write one general issue for everyone. Don't reference anyone's treatment, conditions, appointments or balances in a message sent to the list.
- Never put patient addresses in To or CC. Use your email tool so each person receives an individual message.
- Get the patient's written authorization before using their name, photo, smile transformation or story.
- HHS's guidance on email with patients calls for reasonable safeguards, such as checking addresses before sending and limiting the amount or type of information sent by unencrypted email.
- If you upload a patient list to an email service, ask your privacy officer or compliance advisor whether that service needs a business associate agreement. HHS requires a written business associate contract when a covered entity engages a business associate.
CAN-SPAM basics
In the U.S., the CAN-SPAM Act applies to commercial email, including newsletters. Each message must identify the sender, include a valid physical postal address, and offer a clear way to unsubscribe. Opt-out requests must be honored promptly.
Subject lines must not mislead. You can build a compliant footer with the email footer generator.
Your state dental board may also have rules on advertising. Check them before you send promotions or describe services.
Frequently asked questions
Can a dental office send a newsletter to its patients under HIPAA?
Communications that describe the practice's own health-related services are not "marketing" under the HIPAA Privacy Rule, unless a third party pays the practice to make them. HHS's example is a provider announcing a new specialty or new equipment to its patient list through a general mailing. Promotions paid for by a third party need the patient's authorization.
Can I feature patient testimonials or before-and-after photos?
Get the patient's written HIPAA authorization first. Under 45 CFR 164.508(a)(1), a use or disclosure of protected health information that the Privacy Rule doesn't otherwise permit requires a valid authorization, and publishing a patient's name, photo or treatment story falls into that category. Verbal approval isn't enough.
Are appointment reminders part of the newsletter?
No. Appointment and recall reminders are individual messages about a patient's care. Keep them separate from the newsletter, which should be general enough for everyone on the list.
Does CAN-SPAM apply to a dental newsletter?
If its primary purpose is to promote your practice's services, yes: include your practice's postal address and a working unsubscribe link, and honor opt-outs within 10 business days.
How Newsletter Ready helps
Newsletter Ready reads your site's news or blog listing page, or its RSS feed, every hour and picks up to 10 new articles. It drafts an issue from up to 6 of the newest articles you have not used yet.
The draft uses only facts found in your articles and puts a link to the source under each section. Nothing is sent until you approve it.
Sender details and the unsubscribe link are added automatically. Readers can unsubscribe in one click, and addresses that bounce or complain are suppressed. You can record the consent basis for each subscriber.
Paste your site URL on the homepage to get a sample issue in about a minute, with no sign-up. The free plan covers 300 subscribers and 4 issues a month.
Newsletters by industry
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- Newsletter Ideas for Accountants and Bookkeepers
- Nonprofit Newsletter Ideas: Keeping Supporters Informed
- B2B Newsletters: How to Start One and What to Send Your Business Contacts
- Webinar and Seminar Promotion Emails: When to Send and What to Write
- Ecommerce Newsletter Ideas: More Than Sales Announcements
- Email Newsletters for Home Service Contractors: HVAC, Roofing, Plumbing and Remodeling
Sources
- FTC: CAN-SPAM Act: A Compliance Guide for Business
- HHS: Marketing (HIPAA Privacy Rule guidance)
- HHS: Does the HIPAA Privacy Rule permit health care providers to use e-mail to discuss health issues and treatment with their patients?
- HHS: Covered Entities and Business Associates
- 45 CFR 164.501 (definition of marketing) and 164.508(a)(3) (eCFR)
This page is general information, not legal advice.