This practice is required, by law, to maintain the privacy and confidentiality of your protected health information and to provide our patients with notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to your protected health information.

Disclosure of Your Health Care Information

Treatment

We may disclose your health care information to other healthcare professionals within our practice for the purpose of treatment, payment or healthcare operations.

(example)

"On occasion, it may be necessary to seek consultation regarding your condition from other health care providers associated with this practice."

"It is our policy to provide a substitute health care provider, authorized by this practice to provide assessment and/or treatment to our patients, without advanced notice, in the event of your primary health care provider's absence due to vacation, sickness, or other emergency situation."

Payment

We may disclose your health information to your insurance provider for the purpose of payment, or health care operations.

Workers' Compensation

We may disclose your health information as necessary to comply with State Workers' Compensation Laws.

Emergencies

We may disclose your health information to notify or assist in notifying a family member, or another person responsible for your care about your medical condition or in the event of an emergency or of your death.

Public Health

As required by law, we may disclose your health information to public health authorities for purposes related to: preventing or controlling disease, injury or disability, reporting child abuse or neglect, reporting domestic violence, reporting to the Food and Drug Administration problems with products and reactions to medications, and reporting disease or infection exposure.

Judicial and Administrative Proceedings

We may disclose your health information in the course of any administrative, or judicial proceeding.

Law Enforcement

We may disclose your health information to a law enforcement official for purposes such as identifying or locating a suspect, fugitive, material witness or missing person, complying with a court order or subpoena, and other law enforcement purposes.

Deceased Persons

We may disclose your health information to coroners or medical examiners.

Organ Donation

We may disclose your health information to organizations involved in procuring, banking, or transplanting organs and tissues.

Research

We may disclose your health information to researchers conducting research that has been approved by an Institutional Review Board.

Public Safety

It may be necessary to disclose your health information to appropriate persons in order to prevent or lessen a serious and imminent threat to the health or safety of a particular person or to the general public.

Specialized Government Agencies

We may disclose your health information for military, national security, prisoner and government benefits purposes.

Change of Ownership

In the event that this practice is sold or merged with another organization, your health information/record will become the property of the new owner.

Your Health Information Rights:

• You have the right to request restrictions on certain uses and disclosures of your health information. Please be advised, however, that this practice is not required to agree to the restriction that you requested.
• You have the right to have your health information received or communicated through an alternative method or sent to an alternative location other than the usual method of communication or delivery, upon your request.
• You have the right to inspect and copy your health information.
• You have a right to request that this practice amend your protected health information. Please be advised, however, that this practice is not required to agree to amend your protected health information. If your request to amend your health information has been denied, you will be provided with an explanation of our denial reason(s)and information about how you can disagree with the denial.
• You have a right to receive an accounting of disclosures of your protected health information made by this practice.
• You have a right to a paper copy of this Notice of Privacy Practices at any time upon request.

Changes to this Notice of Privacy Practices

This practice reserves the right to amend this Notice of Privacy Practices at any time in the future, and will make the new provisions effective for all information that it maintains. Until such amendment is made, this practice is required by law to comply with this notice.

This practice is required by law to maintain the privacy of your health information and to provide you with notice of its legal duties and privacy practices with respect to your health information. If you have questions about any part of this notice or if you want more information about your privacy rights, please contact: us by calling this office. If the Doctor is not available, you may make an appointment for a personal conference in person, or by telephone within two working days.

Complaints

Complaints about your Privacy rights or how this practice has handled your health information should be directed to the doctor, by calling this office. If the doctor is not available, you may make an appointment for a personal conference in person, or by telephone within two working days.

If you are not satisfied with the manner in which this office handles your complaint, you may submit a formal complaint to:

DHHS, Office of Civil Rights
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Room 509F HHH Building
Washington, DC 20201