Navigating Cybersecurity Obstacles in Rural Healthcare

Governance & Risk Management , Healthcare , Industry Specific Navigating Cybersecurity Obstacles in Rural Healthcare Greg Sieg, CISO at Univ. of Michigan Regional Health Network, on Top Challenges Marianne Kolbasuk McGee (HealthInfoSec) • March 13, 2026     8 Minutes    Share Post Share Credit Eligible Get Permission Audio Player 00:00 00:00 Use Up/Down Arrow keys to increase or decrease volume. Greg Sieg, CISO, University of Michigan Regional Health Network (Image: University of Michigan Regional Health Network) Real and intense financial pressures on rural and small healthcare clinics mandate making difficult decisions on allocating funds to cybersecurity, said Greg Sieg, CISO at the University of Michigan Regional Health Network. "On the rural side, the funding is just not there to bring in all the tools and resources available to look at this on a daily basis," he said. "You're looking at whether to replace an MRI machine or do you increase your EDR or cybersecurity footprint. Most of the time, the MRI machine is going to win out," Sieg said. "We're here to serve the patients and the care of the community, and if we put everything into cybersecurity, we can't fund our MRIs and other devices to help that overall mission of the organization." "The threat actors need to be right once, we have to be right every time, and it's an unfair advantage that we're dealing with," Sieg said in an interview with Information Security Media Group during the HIMSS 2026 Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. In this audio interview with Information Security Media Group (see audio link below photo), Sieg also discussed: Navigating cyber challenges, including by taking a layered security approach; Why federal grants and other financial resources are helpful but not an easy fix to rural healthcare's cyber challenges; Potential promise and challenges involving artificial intelligence in cybersecurity. At the University of Michigan Regional Health Network, Sieg leads the Information Assurance department for the University of Michigan Health-West and University of Michigan Health-Sparrow.