“Restorative Justice as an Economic Policy Tool: A Cost-Benefit Analysis in the Healthcare Sector”

Abstract

The escalating frequency and sophistication of healthcare data breaches pose significant challenges to public health institutions, extending beyond immediate financial and regulatory penalties to erode patient trust and organizational reputation. Traditional incident response frameworks, primarily focused on legal compliance and financial mitigation, often fall short in addressing the profound socio-emotional harms experienced by affected individuals. This paper develops a comprehensive conceptual framework to analyze healthcare data breach response, specifically exploring the potential of integrating restorative justice (RJ) principles as a more holistic and patient-centered approach.