A healthcare app carries data-sensitivity and compliance requirements a generic consumer app doesn't — and retrofitting those requirements after launch is far more expensive than scoping for them from day one.
What to scope up front
- What data you're actually handling. Appointment scheduling carries different requirements than storing clinical records — don't over- or under-engineer for the wrong category.
- Which regulatory regime applies. HIPAA in the US, and equivalent frameworks elsewhere, depend on your data and your users' location — this needs answering before architecture decisions, not after.
- Access controls and audit logging — who can see what, and a record of who did, built into the architecture rather than bolted on.
Where the cost actually goes
Encryption at rest and in transit, role-based access control, and audit logging add real but bounded cost during a scoped build — a fraction of the cost of adding them to a live product because a regulator or a client asked.
Tell us what data you're handling and we'll tell you honestly what compliance work that requires — see our services, or start with a scoped Starter Sprint to validate the approach first.