Immaculate Home Healthcare Notice of Privacy Practices
This notice describes how medical information about you may be used and disclosed and how you can access this information. Please review it carefully.
Patient Health Information
Under federal law, your health information is protected and confidential. Patient health information (PHI) includes information about your medical history, symptoms, and test results, diagnosis, treatments and other related medical information. Your health information also includes payment, billing and insurance information.
Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency is committed to maintaining our client’s confidentiality. This notice describes your rights and our obligations under regulations (collectively, as now or hereafter amended or supplemented, the “Privacy Rule”) issued under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPPA”) regarding your health information and informs you about the possible uses and disclosures of your health information. This Notice applies to all information and records related to your care that Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency has received or created, or will receive or create. It extends to information received or created by our employees, staff, and volunteers as well as by doctors and/or other health care practitioners practicing at Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency . Your personal doctor may have different policies or notices regarding the doctor’s use and disclosures of your health information created in the doctor’s office or clinic.
This notice applies to all Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency facilities, programs and affiliates that may share information as necessary to coordinate your care and for the purposes described in this Notice.
Uses and Disclosures without Authorization
Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency may use and disclose your health information for purposes of treatment, payment and health care operations as described below.
1) Treatment:
We may use health information about you to provide you services. We may disclose health information about you to doctors, nurses, technicians, medical students, or other Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency example: a clinician treating you for heart disease notices you have a leg ulcer; this would be reported to the physician. We may also disclose health information to individuals or facilities that will be involved in care after you leave Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency .
2) Payment:
We may use and disclose your health information so that we can bill and receive payment for the treatment and services you receive. For billing and payment purposes, we may disclose your health information to insurance or managed care company. Medicare, Medicaid, or another third party payer. For example, we may contact Medicare or your health plan to confirm your coverage or to request prior approval for a proposed treatment or service.
3) Health Care Operations:
We may use and disclose your health information as necessary for facility operations such as for management purposes, or the monitoring of the quality of care you receive from Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency. For example, health information of many patients may be combined and analyzed for purposes such as evaluating and improving quality of care and planning for services. Health information is used in evaluating our employees, and in reviewing the qualifications and practicing of health care providers within Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency . We may also use and disclose health information for education and training purposes. We may also use and disclose health information to other health care entities, in compliance with the Privacy Rule, that have a treatment relationship with you.
There are some services provided in our organization through contracts with independent contractors who, for the purposes of the Privacy Rule, are considered Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency business associates. Examples include an on-site document destruction company and a copy service we may use when making copies of your health record when these services are utilized, Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency may disclose your health information to our business associates so that they can be performed the way we have asked them to do. To protect your health information, however, we require the business associate to appropriately safeguard information.
Special Uses
Under the privacy Rule, Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency is permitted and may be required to use or disclose your health information without your written authorization in limited situations. The following lists the limited situations in which Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency may use and disclose your health information without written authorization:
v As required by law
v Food and Drug Administration
v Public Health or Legal Authorities charged with preventing or controlling disease, injury or disability.
v Reporting Victims of Abuse, Neglect or Domestic Violence
v Judicial and Administrative Proceedings
v Law Enforcement
v Correctional Institutions
v Workers Compensation Agents
v Military Command Authorities
v Health Oversight Agencies
v Funeral Directors, Coroners, Medical Examiners, Organ and Tissue Procurement Organizations
v National Security and Intelligence Agencies, Protective Services for the President and other Governmental Officials
v Research
v To prevent a serious threat to health or safety
Other Uses and disclosures
Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency may use or disclose your health information in the following ways unless you object to the use or request that we limit the use.
1) Individuals involved in your care or payment for your care.
We may release your health information to a friend or family member who is involved in your Medical care or who helps to pay for your care, In addition, we may disclose your health information to any entity assisting in a disaster relief effort so that your family can be notified about your condition, status or location.
2) Future Communications:
We may communicate to you via newsletters, mailing or other means regarding health – related information, disease management programs, wellness programs, and other community-based initiatives or activities which Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency may participating in. We may also contact you to assess your satisfaction with our services. If you do not wish to be contacted, please notify our offers as soon as possible.
3) Fundraising Activities:
We may use certain health information, limited to contact information such as your name, address, and phone number, and the dates your received treatment or services, to contact you in an effort to raise funds for Immaculate Home Healthcare Agency. If you do not wish to be contacted, please notify our office
4) Appointment Reminders:
We may use or disclose health information to remind you about appointments when disclosing information, primarily, appointment reminders and billing / collections efforts, we may leave messages on you answering machine/voice mail.
