How much does not shredding cost? For CVS Pharmacy it was two and a quarter million dollars. The pharmacy was caught throwing patient data into their dumpsters. The documents were discovered by the local news and reported the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Throwing patient data in the trash is a violation of HIPAA. The payment will go to the HHS along with the implementation of a “robust corrective plan.”

With 700 billion dollar spending packages that might seem small but most businesses don’t have an extra 2 million sitting around to pay out settlements. Now weigh that against the cost of a shredding service that will come by monthly for $50. That is 44,500 visits or 3,708 years of shredding done for you.

So to recap the last few hundred posts; your shredding options are secure and cheap: a shredding service, less secure and more expensive: buy a shredder and hope, not secure and most expensive: do nothing.