Home/r/SaaS/2025-07-22/#health-tech-lovable-mvp-hipaa-lessons
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Yeap I built a health tech project in Lovable

r/SaaS
7/21/2025

Content Summary

A founder used Lovable to generate an entire health-tech MVP aimed at hospitals, only to realize post-LOI that the stack (Clerk, Supabase) is not HIPAA compliant and lacks proper security policies. Despite the gaps, multiple hospitals issued Letters of Intent thanks to the founder’s insider status as a chief anesthesiologist. The post humorously lists assumptions made and lessons learned, concluding that a full refactor is now required before handling real patient data. Comments praise the power of domain expertise + AI for rapid validation while warning against using AI-generated code in regulated industries.

Opinion Analysis

Mainstream opinion: The combination of deep domain expertise (chief anesthesiologist) and AI code generation is a powerful way to validate demand quickly, even if the initial MVP is technically flawed. Most commenters see the LOIs as strong market validation and advise a compliant rebuild rather than scrapping the idea.

Conflicting views: Some warn that AI-generated code is inherently insecure and unsuitable for healthcare, while others argue that using AI for the MVP phase is acceptable as long as it’s rebuilt properly before production.

Debate: Whether the current traction justifies the risk of showing a non-compliant demo to hospitals, and how much technical debt is acceptable when speed to market is critical.

SAAS TOOLS

SaaSURLCategoryFeatures/Notes
Lovablehttps://lovable.devAI Code-Gen / No-CodeGenerates full-stack code from prompts; used for entire MVP
Clerkhttps://clerk.comAuth & User ManagementThought to be HIPAA compliant (not); SOC 2 badge
Supabasehttps://supabase.comBackend-as-a-ServicePostgres DB, auth, storage; auto-connected by Lovable; $599/mo plan
Epichttps://epic.comHealthcare EHRDominant hospital tech provider, hard to compete against

USER NEEDS

Pain Points:

  • HIPAA compliance gaps (no BAA from Lovable, Clerk not HIPAA compliant)
  • Security policies missing (no written policies, only basic vulnerability scans)
  • Uncertainty about AI model training on patient data
  • Lack of clarity on Supabase disaster recovery (POT recovery not configured)
  • Bureaucracy and regulatory hurdles in healthcare

Problems to Solve:

  • Securely store and process patient symptoms and treatment plans
  • Achieve true HIPAA compliance before handling real patient data
  • Refactor MVP built on AI-generated code to meet enterprise security standards
  • Obtain Business Associate Agreements (BAAs) from all vendors

Potential Solutions:

  • Rip apart current stack and refactor with compliant architecture
  • Leverage founder’s domain expertise (chief anesthesiologist) to navigate hospital procurement
  • Use AI only for non-patient-data automation to reduce compliance scope
  • Engage experienced technical help for security overhaul

GROWTH FACTORS

Effective Strategies:

  • Build a simple MVP first to validate demand before heavy investment
  • Leverage insider domain expertise (chief anesthesiologist founder) to open hospital doors
  • Secure Letters of Intent (LOIs) from hospitals even with non-compliant MVP to prove traction

Marketing & Acquisition:

  • Direct outreach via founder’s professional network in hospitals
  • Demonstrate proof-of-concept to decision-makers rather than lengthy RFP processes
  • Position as "state-of-the-art, secure-by-design" despite current gaps

Monetization & Product:

  • Price point appears to target hospital budgets (implied by $599/mo Supabase plan)
  • Focus on solving specific pain point (anesthesiology workflow) rather than broad EHR replacement
  • Use LOIs to justify rebuilding costs and attract investor funding

User Engagement:

  • Founder’s credibility as practicing physician builds immediate trust
  • Quick MVP demos to hospital stakeholders to maintain momentum
  • Transparent sharing of lessons learned on Reddit to build community goodwill