Privacy Policy
Wee Care Pediatrics Privacy Policy
Privacy Notice
WEE CARE PEDIATRICS Effective Date April 2003
WEE CARE PEDIATRICS NOTICE OF PRIVACY PRACTICE
AS REQUIRED BY THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 1996, HIPAA, THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY
WHO WILL FOLLOW THIS NOTICE
This notice describes our practice's procedures and that of:
>- Any health care professional authorized to enter information into your chart.
>- All employees, staff and other practice personnel including physicians.
OUR PLEDGE REGARDING MEDICAL INFORMATION
We understand that medical information about you and your health is personal. We are committed to protecting medical information about you. We create a record of the care and services you receive at our practice. We need this record to provide you with quality care and to comply with certain legal requirements. This notice applies to all of the records of your care generated by our practice, whether made by practice personnel or your personal doctor. This notice will tell you about the ways in which we may use and disclose medical information about you. We also describe your rights and certain obligations we have regarding the use and disclosure of medical information.
The law requires us to:
make sure that medical information that identifies you is kept private;
give you this notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to medical information about you; and
Follow the terms of the notice.
HOW WE MAY USE AND DISCLOSE MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU
The following categories describe different ways that we use and disclose medical information. For each category of uses or disclosures we will explain what we mean and try to give some examples. Not every use or disclosure in a category will be listed. However, all of the ways we are permitted to use and disclose information will fall within one of the categories.
>- For Treatment. We may use medical information about you to provide you with medical treatment or services. We may disclose medical information about you to doctors, nurses, technicians, medical students, or other practice personnel who are involved in taking care of you at our practice. Some examples of how your information may be used are: a physician treating you for a condition may need to know what medications have been prescribed for you by other physicians. Different care providers also may share medical information about you in order to coordinate services, such as prescriptions, lab work and x-rays. We also may disclose medical information about you to people outside our practice that may be involved in your medical care, such as family members, or others that provide services that are part of your care.
>-For Payment. We may use and disclose medical information about you so that the treatment and services you receive may be billed to and payment may be collected from you, an insurance company or a third party. For example, we may need to give your health plan information about a visit to our office so your health plan will pay us or reimburse you for the visit. We may also tell your health plan about a treatment you are going to receive or obtain prior approval or to determine whether your plan will cover the treatment.
>- For Health Care Operations. We may use and disclose medical information about you for practice operations. These uses and disclosures are necessary to run our practice and make sure that all of our patients receive quality care. For example, we may use medical information to review our treatment and services and to evaluate the performance of our staff in caring for you. We may also combine medical information about many patients to decide what additional services our practice should offer, what services are not needed, and whether certain new treatments are effective. We may also disclose information to doctors, nurses, technicians, medical students, residents and other practice personnel for review and learning purposes. We may also send you information about products or services that we believe may be beneficial to you. You may contact our Privacy Officer to request that these materials not be sent to you.
>- Appointment Reminders/Follow up Phone Calls. We may use and disclose medical information to contact you as a reminder that you have an appointment for treatment or medical care at our practice. We may call to follow up on care received with us, to communicate test results, to confirm an appointment with us, regarding participation in a special program and for post-op care.
>-Treatment Alternatives. We may use and disclose medical information to tell you about or recommend possible treatment options or alternatives that may be of interest to you.
>-Health-Related Benefits and Services. We may use and disclose medical information to tell you about health-related benefits or services that may be of interest to you.
>-Individuals Involved in Your Care or Payment for Your Care. We may release medical information about you to a friend or family member who is involved in your medical care. We may also give information to someone who helps pay for your care.
>-As Required By Law. We will disclose medical information about you when required to do so by federal, state or local law.
>- Research. We may disclose information to researchers when their research has been approved by an institutional review board that has reviewed the research proposal and established protocols to ensure the privacy of your health information.
>- Coroners, Medical Examiners and Funeral Directors. We may release medical information to a coroner or medical examiner. This may be necessary, for example, to identify a deceased person or determine the cause of death. We may also release medical information about patients of our practice to funeral directors as necessary to carry out their duties.
>- National Security and Intelligence Activities. We may release medical information about you to authorized federal officials for intelligence, counterintelligence, and other national security
activities authorized by law.
>- Protective Services for the President and Others. We may disclose medical information about you to authorized federal officials so they may provide protection to the President, other authorized persons or foreign heads of state or conduct special investigations.
>- Inmates. If you are an inmate of a correctional institution or under the custody of a law enforcement official, we may release medical information about you to the correctional institution or law enforcement official. This release would be necessary (1) for the institution to provide you with health care; (2) to protect your health and safety or the health and safety of others; or (3) for the safety and security of the correctional institution.
YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU
You have the following rights regarding medical information we maintain about you:
>- Right to Inspect and Copy. You have the right to inspect and receive a copy of medical information that may be used to make decisions about your care. Usually, this includes medical and billing records, but does not include psychotherapy notes. To inspect and copy medical information that may be used to make decisions about you, you must submit your request in writing to our practice. If you request a copy of the information, we may charge a fee for the costs of copying, mailing or other supplies associated with your request. We may deny your request to inspect and copy in certain very limited circumstances. If you are denied access to medical information, you may request that the denial be reviewed.
>- Right to Amend. If you feel that medical information we have about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask your physician to amend the information. You have the right to request an amendment for as long as the information is kept by or for our practice.
To request an amendment, your request must be made in writing and submitted to our practice. In addition, you must provide a reason that supports your request.
We may deny your request for an amendment if it is not in writing or does not include a reason to support the request. In addition, we may deny your request if you ask us to amend information that:
Was not created by us, unless the person or entity that created the information is no longer available to make the amendment;
• Is not part of the medical information kept by or for our practice;
• Is not part of the information which you would be permitted to inspect and copy; or
• Is accurate and complete.
SPECIAL SITUATIONS
>- Workers' Compensation. We may release medical information about you for workers' compensation or similar programs. These programs provide benefits for work-related injuries or illness.
>- Public Health Risks. We may disclose medical information as allowed by New York State Law about you for public health activities. These activities generally include the following:
To prevent or control disease, injury or disability;
To report births and deaths;
To report child abuse or neglect;
To report reactions to medications or problems with products;
To notify people of recalls of products they may be using;
To notify a person who may have been exposed to a disease or may be at risk for contracting or spreading a disease or condition;
To notify the appropriate government authority if we believe a patient has been the victim of abuse, neglect or domestic violence. We will only make this disclosure if you agree or when required or authorized by law.
Serious threats to the health and safety of you and others in the public.
>-Health Oversight Activities. We may disclose medical information to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law. These oversight activities include, for example, audits, investigations, inspections, and licensure. These activities are necessary for the government to monitor the health care system, government programs, and compliance with civil rights laws.
>- Lawsuits and Disputes. If you are involved in a lawsuit or a dispute, we may disclose medical information about you in response to a court or administrative order. We may also disclose medical information about you in response to a subpoena when appropriate.
>- Law Enforcement. We may release medical information as allowed by New York State Law if asked to do so by a law enforcement official:
In response to a court order, subpoena, warrant, summons or similar process;
To identify or locate a suspect, fugitive, material witness, or missing person;
About the victim of a crime if, under certain limited circumstances, we are unable to obtain the person's agreement;
About a death we believe may be the result of criminal conduct;
In emergency circumstances to report a crime; the location of the crime or victims; or the identity, description or location of the person who committed the crime.
Privacv Notice
>- Right to an Accounting of Disclosures. You have the right to request an "accounting of disclosures." This is a list of the disclosures we made of medical information about you that was not pursuant to Treatment, Payment of Healthcare Operations or an authorization.
To request this list or accounting of disclosures, you must submit your request in writing to our practice. Your request must state a time period, which may not be longer than six years and may not include dates before April 14, 2003. Your request should indicate in what form you want the list (for example, on paper, electronically). The first list you request within a 12-month period will be free. For additional lists, we may charge you for the costs of providing the list. We will notify you of the cost involved and you may choose to withdraw or modify your request at that time before any costs are incurred.
>- Right to Request Restrictions. You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the medical information we use or disclose about you for treatment, payment or health care operations. You also have the right to request a limit on the medical information we disclose about you to someone who is involved in your care or the payment for your care, like a family member or friend. For example, you could ask that we not use or disclose information about a surgery that you have had. We are not required to agree to your request. If we do agree, we will make an effort to limit the disclosure of your information unless the information is needed to provide you emergency treatment. To request restrictions, you must make your request in writing to our practice. In your request, you must tell us (1) what information you want to limit; (2) whether you want to limit our use, disclosure or both; and (3) to whom you want the limits to apply, for example, disclosures to your spouse.
>- Right to Request Confidential Communications. You have the right to request that we communicate with you about medical matters in a certain way or at a certain location. For example, you can ask that we only contact you at work or by mail.
To request confidential communications, you must make your request in writing to our practice. We will not ask you the reason for your request. We will accommodate all reasonable requests. Your request must specify how or where you wish to be contacted.
>- Right to a Paper Copy of This Notice. You have the right to a paper copy of this notice. You may ask us to give you a copy of this notice at any time. Even if you have agreed to receive this notice electronically, you are still entitled to a paper copy of this notice. To obtain a paper copy of this notice ask the front desk staff.
CHANGES TO THIS NOTICE
We reserve the right to change this notice. We reserve the right to make the revised or changed notice effective for medical information we already have about you as well as any information we receive in the future. We will post a copy of the current notice at our practice. The notice will contain on the first page, in the top right-hand corner, the effective date. If you wish to receive a new copy of the revised notice we will gladly provide it to you.
COMPLAINTS If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with our practice. If you are dissatisfied with our response you may also file a complaint with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. To file a complaint with our practice, contact a member of our practice's staff. All complaints must be submitted in writing to the practices privacy officer. You will not be penalized for filing a complaint.
OTHER USES OF MEDICAL INFORMATION
Other uses and disclosures of medical information not covered by this notice or the laws that apply to us will be made only with your written permission. If you provide us permission to use or disclose medical information about you, you may revoke that permission, in writing, at any time. If you revoke your permission', we will no longer use or disclose medical information about you for the reasons covered by your written authorization. Please understand that we are unable to take back any disclosures we have already made with your permission, and that we are required to retain our records of the care that we provided to you.
New York State Law
Our practice will also follow any applicable New York State Laws regarding the use and disclosure of your protected patient health information.
For further information about matters covered by the Privacy Practice Notice, please contact our Privacy Officer at (315-699-9595).
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