Cybersecurity pricing for healthcare practices is hard to pin down because most providers won't publish a number. The honest version: cost scales with the size of the practice and how much of the work you run yourself versus outsource. The controls are largely the same from a solo dental office to a multi-location group — what changes is the operating burden and the documentation the HIPAA Security Rule expects, starting with the risk analysis.
Here are the four realistic tiers, what each covers, and where the gaps sit.
The Four Realistic Tiers
DIY Baseline
$0–$200 / monthBare minimum — HIPAA gaps remain
Controls
- MFA on email, the EHR, and banking (free)
- Built-in OS antivirus and automatic updates
- Native Microsoft 365 / Google Workspace backup
- A risk analysis attempted from a template
- Drive encryption (BitLocker / FileVault, free)
Gap
No 24/7 monitoring, no defensible risk analysis, no audit controls operated, and no one watching for a ransomware event that would lock the EHR mid-clinic.
Software + Self-Managed
$200–$799 / monthBetter tooling, still no operator
Controls
- Everything in the baseline, plus:
- Password manager for the practice
- Microsoft 365 Business Premium (Defender + Intune)
- Third-party backup for M365 / Workspace
- A phishing-training platform
- Endpoint detection (EDR) licences
Gap
The tools exist but nobody operates them. The alert that ransomware is encrypting a workstation lands in an inbox nobody is watching.
Managed Essential → Plus
$799–$1,699 / monthThe realistic fit for most single-location practices
Controls
- Everything above, fully operated, plus:
- Managed EDR with 24/7 SOC monitoring
- Email security with active response
- Phishing simulations + training run for you
- Account-compromise monitoring and lockout
- Monthly plain-English security report
Gap
Light coverage on a named incident-response retainer, a formal risk analysis, and dedicated Security Official / vCISO time at the lower end.
Complete / Multi-Location
$1,699–$2,400+ / monthLarger practices and groups
Controls
- Everything above, plus:
- Fractional vCISO / Security Official support
- Documented HIPAA risk analysis + remediation tracking
- Vulnerability scanning with remediation
- Incident-response retainer with named team and breach-notification workflow
- BAA management and cyber-insurance renewal support
Gap
Diminishing returns above this point — you're paying for scale or multi-site complexity.
The Compliance Floor You Can't Skip
Whatever you spend, there's a floor. The HIPAA Security Rule requires administrative, physical, and technical safeguards for ePHI — and there's no size exemption. We cover the full set in HIPAA cybersecurity requirements for small practices. The floor applies to the solo practitioner as much as the group.
Why the Risk Analysis Drives the Price
The single most important — and most-skipped — control is a documented risk analysis. It's the foundation of the Security Rule and the deficiency HHS OCR cites most often in enforcement. It also sets your spend: done properly, it tells you exactly which controls your environment needs, so you buy the right things instead of guessing. We walk through what OCR actually wants in the HIPAA risk analysis HHS OCR actually wants.
What You're Actually Paying For
EDR licences cost a few dollars per device — so why does managed security cost more? Because the licence is the cheap part. The value is someone operatingit: catching ransomware before it locks the EHR mid-clinic, enforcing MFA on systems holding ePHI, running training, maintaining audit controls, and keeping the risk analysis current. That's labour. The general version is in what cybersecurity actually costs for SMBs, and the cross-industry view in what compliance cybersecurity costs.
The Bottom Line
Most single-location practices should expect to spend between $799 and $1,699 per monthfor credible managed security, with groups scaling higher. Below that you're buying tools nobody operates; above it you're paying for scale or multi-site complexity. Against OCR penalties, breach-notification costs, and the reality that you can't see patients with the EHR down, it's a small and defensible cost.
See our published plans and pricing for exact tiers, or how we deliver them on the cybersecurity for healthcare practices page.
This article is general information, not legal, tax, or compliance advice. Pricing shown is indicative and subject to a written services agreement.
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