Privacy Policy
Effective Date 01/01/2009 | Revised 2013, Revised 04/2021
THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW HEALTH INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.
UNDERSTANDING YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION
Each Time you visit a hospital, physician, or other healthcare provider, a record of your visit is made. Typically, this record contains your symptoms, examination and test results, diagnoses, treatment, and a plan for future care or treatment. This information is often referred to as your health or medical record.
Our hospital and clinics are required to follow specific rules on maintaining the privacy of your protected health information. This Notice describes your rights to access and control your protected health information. It also describes how we follow applicable rules and use and disclose your protected health information to provide your treatment, obtain payment for services you receive, manage our health care operations and for other purposes that are permitted or required by law.
We are required by law to:
- Make sure that health information that identifies you is kept private;
- Give you this notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to health information about you;
- Notify you following a breach of your protected health information that was unsecured; and
- Follow the terms of the notice that are currently in effect.
USES AND DISCLOSURES OF PROTECTED HEALTH INFORMATION
The following categories describe examples of ways that we may use and disclose health information. For more inclusive description see 45 C.F.R. Part 164.
HEALTH INFORMATION ORGANIZATION (HIO)
We may disclose health information about you to a health information organization (HIO). HIO facilitate the exchange of electronic protected information or the purpose of treatment, payment and healthcare operations purposed between and among several health care providers, such as hospital, doctors, pharmacies, etc.
TREATMENT
We may use health information about you to provide you with medical treatment or services. We may disclose health information about you to physicians, nurses, technicians, medical students or other health care personnel who are involved in your care at the hospital. We may use or disclose your protected information, as necessary, to contact you to remind you of your appointment. We may also provide your physician or subsequent healthcare provider with copies of hospital reports that should assist in your treatment. We may contact you by phone or other means to provide results from exams or tests and to provide information that describes or recommends treatment alternatives regarding your care. We may also contact you to provide information about health related benefits and services offered by our hospital and hospital clinics.
PAYMENT
We may use and disclose health information about you so that payment for treatment and services you receive may be collected from you or a third party.
HEALTHCARE OPERATIONS
We may use and disclose health information in order to support the business activities of the hospital. These activities may include quality assessment to assess the care and outcomes in your case. We may combine the health information we have with health information from other hospitals to compare how we are doing and see where we can make improvements.
HEALTH OVERSIGHT ACTIVITIES
We may disclose health information to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law. These oversight activities include accreditations, 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.
HOSPITAL DIRECTORY
We may use or disclose limited information in the hospital directory. You will be given an opportunity in advance to agree or object. The information used is limited to name, location in the hospital, and religious affiliation. Directory information may be disclosed to members of the clergy.
NOTIFICATION/COMMUNICATION WITH FAMILY
We may release information to a family member, personal representative, or another person who is involved in your medical care or payment related to your care unless you object in whole or in part.
BUSINESS ASSOCIATES
There are some services provided in our organization through contacts with business associates. Examples include physician services in the emergency department and radiology, certain laboratory tests and a copy service we use when making copies of your health record. When these services are contracted, we may disclose your health information to our business associate so that they can perform the job we have asked them. To protect your health information, we require the business associate to appropriately safeguard your information.
PUBLIC HEALTH
As required by law, we may disclose your health information to public health or legal authorities with preventing or controlling disease, injury, or disability. We report information about births, deaths and various diseases to government officials in charge of collecting that information. We provide coroners, medical examiners and funeral directors necessary information relating to deaths.
FEDERAL, STATE, OR LOCAL LAW
We will disclose health information when a law requires that we report information to government agencies and law enforcement personnel about victims of abuse, neglect or domestic violence or when ordered in a judicial or administrative hearing.
ORGAN AND TISSUE DONATION
Consistent with applicable law, we may disclose health information to organ procurement organizations or other entities engaged in the procurement, banking, or transplantation of organs for the purpose of tissue donation and transplant.
RESEARCH
We may disclose your health information in order to conduct medical research after protocols have been established to ensure the privacy of your health information.
CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION
Should you be an inmate of a correctional institution, we may disclose to the institution health information necessary for your health and the health and safety of other individuals.
LAW ENFORCEMENT
We may disclose health information for law enforcement purposes as required by law or response to a valid subpoena
WORKER’S COMPENSATION
We may disclose health information for workers’ compensation or similar programs.
FUNDRAISING
We may contact you to raise funds for a particular hospital service or project. You have the right to opt out of receiving such communications.