Paulding Ohio Hospital Deploys BIO-key’s PortalGuard Cloud Platform to Manage Identity-Bound Biometric Authentication for Epic Hyperdrive

PAULDING, Ohio and WALL, N.J., July 12, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BIO-key International, Inc. (NASDAQ: BKYI), an innovative provider of workforce and customer identity and access management (IAM) solutions featuring Identity-Bound Biometrics (IBB), announced that longstanding customer Paulding County Hospital (PCH) is deploying BIO-key’s PortalGuard Identity-as-a-Service (IDaaS) cloud platform to leverage its existing investment in BIO-key’s biometric authentication solution as it migrates to Epic Hyperdrive. The new browser-based Epic Hyperdrive electronic health records system is replacing Epic’s legacy Hyperspace application.

Recognizing the importance of efficient and secure access to critical healthcare applications, PCH is deploying PortalGuard IDaaS in conjunction with Epic Hyperdrive to extend its use of BIO-key’s biometric authentication capabilities to ensure strict compliance with patient privacy regulations such as HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) in the cloud. By deploying PortalGuard with BIO-key biometrics, PCH avoids system-wide user re-enrollment or the adoption of more cumbersome, expensive, or less secure shared authentication solutions. In addition, PortalGuard’s SAML-based Single Sign-On (SSO) Identity Provider capabilities will deliver secure, streamlined, multi-factor authentication for other hospital software applications. Driving the PCH project timeline is the Epic requirement that their customers migrate to Hyperdrive by the November 2023 release deadline.

"Implementing PortalGuard SAML SSO with their mission-critical application Epic Hyperdrive allows PCH to streamline their workflows, reduce administrative burdens, and ensure secure access to patient information with IBB,” said Mark Cochran, President of BIO-key – PortalGuard. “Where security and efficiency are paramount, healthcare organizations face the challenge of providing convenient and reliable access to necessary systems while ensuring data privacy and regulatory compliance. Our IBB solution is revolutionizing biometric authentication in healthcare, providing organizations with flexible, secure, and cost-effective access management solutions by reducing or eliminating reliance on expensive tokens or card-based systems while also maintaining the highest levels of security.