BY FULTON MAY SOLUTIONS

Healthcare organizations face a unique paradox: you need technology to deliver better care, but technology creates vulnerability.

Electronic health records, telemedicine systems, patient scheduling, billing platforms, imaging storage: modern healthcare runs on interconnected technology. That technology improves outcomes. It makes care faster, more accessible, and more coordinated. It also creates data risk.

Patient data is sensitive, and not just because HIPAA says so. It is health information. It can affect someone’s care, their insurance, their life.

That is why the System and Organization Controls (SOC) 2® Type II report matters for healthcare IT providers, and why Fulton May Solutions’ recently completed SOC 2 Type II examination matters for the healthcare organizations we serve.

The Healthcare IT Challenge in 2026

Healthcare organizations are under pressure from several directions at once.

Regulatory pressure. HIPAA compliance is foundational, but regulators are looking beyond HIPAA. They want to know whether your IT infrastructure is secure enough to protect patient data over the long term.

Security threat escalation. Healthcare is a top target for ransomware. Attackers know healthcare organizations will pay to restore access to patient systems. Every healthcare organization is a potential target.

Operational demands. You cannot interrupt patient care for IT maintenance. Your systems need to be secure, reliable, and performant at the same time.

Patient expectations. Patients expect their health information to be protected. After a breach, they do not care about technical explanations. They care that their data was at risk.

Competition. Other healthcare organizations are adopting new technology and improving outcomes. You need to keep pace without compromising security.

In this environment, who you trust with your IT infrastructure matters.

Why a SOC 2 Type II Report Is Different for Healthcare

You have probably heard about HIPAA compliance, Business Associate Agreements, and various security attestations. What makes a SOC 2 Type II report different?

HIPAA tells you what to protect. A SOC 2 Type II examination verifies that the protection works.

HIPAA specifies required safeguards: security controls, risk assessments, breach response protocols. It does not verify that those controls actually operate effectively. An organization can be technically HIPAA-compliant and still run vulnerable systems.

A SOC 2 Type II examination works differently. An independent CPA firm tests whether security controls operated effectively across a full 12-month period, under real operating conditions. The result is evidence of sustained performance, not a point-in-time self-assessment.

The distinction between report types matters here. A SOC 2 Type I report evaluates whether controls are suitably designed at a single point in time. A SOC 2 Type II report goes further, testing whether those controls operated effectively over an extended review period. For healthcare organizations, that sustained track record is the meaningful signal, because patient data needs protection every day of the year, not just on audit day.

A SOC 2 Type II report covers the full scope of healthcare IT security.

Where HIPAA focuses on privacy and breach notification, a SOC 2 Type II report addresses the Trust Services Criteria:

  • Security: how patient data is protected against unauthorized access
  • Availability: whether systems stay reliably available for patient care
  • Processing integrity: whether patient data remains accurate and complete
  • Confidentiality: whether sensitive information stays private
  • Privacy: whether personal health information is handled correctly

Together, these criteria describe the complete picture of what a healthcare IT provider must protect.

A SOC 2 Type II report is independently verified, not self-assessed.

When an IT provider says “we’re HIPAA compliant,” they are often describing their own assessment. HIPAA compliance is largely self-attested, with formal audits typically triggered by breaches or regulatory scrutiny.

A SOC 2 Type II examination is performed by an outside auditor who reviews controls, tests systems, and verifies that security operates as designed. The organization does not grade its own work.

What Fulton May Solutions’ SOC 2 Type II Report Means for Your Patient Data

Fulton May Solutions recently completed a SOC 2 Type II examination of our controls relevant to security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy. Here is what that means in concrete terms for your patient data.

Your patient records live on systems whose security has been independently verified. Every access control, encryption mechanism, and backup system in scope was examined and tested by an independent auditor.

Your electronic health records remain available when you need them. Healthcare systems cannot go down. Availability was part of the examination scope, verified across a 12-month period.

Your patient data maintains integrity. Processing integrity was explicitly examined, which matters because inaccurate or corrupted medical data can directly affect care.

Sensitive patient information stays private. Confidentiality controls mean unauthorized access is prevented and monitored.

Personal health information is handled correctly. The privacy criterion confirms that controls are in place to handle PHI in line with the commitments a healthcare environment demands.

This is what independent verification buys you: security that has been tested by someone with no stake in the outcome.

How Verified Security Connects to Better Healthcare Outcomes

A SOC 2 Type II report is not only about compliance. It is about enabling care.

  • Move faster with new technology. Telemedicine, remote monitoring, and AI-assisted diagnostics improve care, but only if the underlying security holds up. Verified controls remove the hesitation that slows adoption.
  • Share data more confidently. Coordinated care requires sharing patient information between providers. Verified security makes that sharing safer.
  • Focus on care instead of IT crisis management. Reliable, secure systems let clinical staff concentrate on patients rather than system failures or breach response.
  • Build patient trust. Patients want their data protected. Being able to point to an independently verified SOC 2 Type II report from your IT provider is meaningful evidence that protection is real.

Security as the Foundation for Growth

Healthcare organizations are innovating: new treatment modalities, remote monitoring, AI-assisted care. These technologies improve outcomes, but they only work when security is foundational.

A SOC 2 Type II report is evidence that an IT provider built security into its operations rather than bolting it on afterward. For healthcare organizations looking to innovate, that distinction is essential. You need an IT partner who can handle innovation and security together.

That is what Fulton May Solutions’ SOC 2 Type II report represents.

Next Steps

If your organization is evaluating IT providers, whether you are moving to a new partner or auditing your current one, ask whether the provider has completed a SOC 2 Type II examination. Treat the answer as evidence of how seriously the provider takes patient data protection.

Fulton May Solutions has completed its SOC 2 Type II examination. We understand healthcare’s unique security and compliance needs, and we have served healthcare organizations for 23 years. Our client satisfaction rate of approximately 98% is verified through ConnectWise CSAT.

If you want to talk about what verified security looks like for your organization, let’s schedule a call.

Schedule a 15-Minute Consultation

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About Fulton May Solutions

Fulton May Solutions is a managed IT partner for healthcare organizations. Our SOC 2 Type II examination means the controls behind our patient data protection practices have been independently examined by a third-party CPA firm.

Founded in 2003. 23 years serving healthcare, 800+ projects delivered, approximately 98% client satisfaction verified through ConnectWise.

Oak Brook, IL | Chicago, IL | Short Hills, NJ