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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. This Notice of Privacy Practices describes how we may use and disclose your protected health information to carry out treatment, payment or health care operations and for other purposes that are permitted or required by federal and state law. It also describes your rights to access and control your protected health information. “Protected health information” is information about you, including demographic information, that may identify you and that relates to your past, present or future physical or mental health or condition and related health care services. We are required to abide by the terms of this Notice of Privacy Practices.
We may change the terms of our notice, at any time. The new notice will be
effective for all protected health information that we maintain at that time.
Upon your request, we will provide you with any revised Notice of Privacy
Practices by; accessing our web site (www.pourlosdds.com), calling the office
and requesting that a revised copy be sent to you in the mail or asking for
one at the time of your next appointment. 1. Uses and Disclosures of Protected Health Information Your Protected Health Information (PHI) may be used and disclosed by your physician, our office staff and others outside of our office that are involved in your care and treatment for the purpose of providing health care services to you. Your PHI may also be used and disclosed to pay your health care bills and to support the operation of the physician’s practice. Following are examples of the types of uses and disclosures of your PHI that the physician’s office is permitted to make. These examples are not meant to be exhaustive, but to describe the types of uses and disclosures that may be made by our office. Treatment: We will use and disclose your PHI to provide, coordinate, or manage your health care and any related services. This includes the coordination or management of your health care with a third party that has already obtained your permission to have access to your PHI. For example, we would disclose your PHI, as necessary, to a home health agency that provides care to you. We will also disclose PHI to other physicians who may be treating you when we have the necessary permission from you to disclose your PHI. For example, your PHI may be provided to a physician to whom you have been referred to ensure that the physician has the necessary information to diagnose or treat you. In addition, we may disclose your PHI from time-to-time to another physician or health care provider (e.g., a specialist or laboratory) who, at the request of your physician, becomes involved in your care by providing assistance with your health care diagnosis or treatment to your physician. Payment: Your PHI will be used, as needed, to obtain payment for your health
care services. This may include certain activities that your health insurance
plan may undertake before it approves or pays for the health care services
we recommend for you such as; making a determination of eligibility or coverage
for insurance benefits, reviewing services provided to you for medical necessity,
and undertaking utilization review activities. This may also include disclosing
pertinent demographic and financial information to our contracted collection
agency when necessary. For example, we may disclose your PHI to medical school students that see patients at our office. In addition, we may use a sign-in sheet at the registration desk where you will be asked to sign your name and indicate your physician. We may also call you by name in the waiting room when your physician is ready to see you. We may use or disclose your PHI, as necessary, to contact you to remind you of your appointment and, if you are unavailable, we may leave the information with another member of your household or on your voice mail. We will share your PHI with third party “business associates” that perform various activities (e.g., billing, transcription services) for the practice. Whenever an arrangement between our office and a business associate involves the use or disclosure of your PHI, we will have a written contract that contains terms that will protect the privacy of your protected health information. We may use or disclose your PHI, as necessary, to provide you with information about treatment alternatives or other health-related benefits and services that may be of interest to you. You may contact our Privacy Contact to request that these materials not be sent to you. Other Uses and Disclosures of your Protected Health Information will be made only with your written authorization, unless otherwise permitted or required by law as described below. You may revoke this authorization, at any time, in writing, except to the extent that your physician or the physician’s practice has taken an action in reliance on the use or disclosure indicated in the authorization. * Other Permitted and Required Uses and Disclosures That May Be Made With
Your Authorization or Opportunity to Object We may disclose to a member of your family, a relative, a close friend or
any other person you identify, your PHI that directly relates to that person’s
involvement in your health care. If you are unable to agree or object to
such a disclosure, we may disclose such information as necessary if we determine
that it is in your best interest based on our professional judgment. We may
use or disclose PHI to notify or assist in notifying a family member, personal
representative or any other person that is responsible for your care of your
location, general condition or death. Finally, we may use or disclose your
PHI to an authorized public or private entity to assist in disaster relief
efforts and to coordinate uses and disclosures to family or other individuals
involved in your health care. Required by Law: We may use or disclose your PHI to the extent that the
use or disclosure is required by law. The use or disclosure will be made
in compliance with the law and will be limited to the relevant requirements
of the law. You will be notified, as required by law, of any such uses or
disclosures. Communicable Diseases: We may disclose your PHI, if authorized by law, to a person who may have been exposed to a communicable disease or may otherwise be at risk of contracting or spreading the disease or condition. Health Oversight: We may disclose PHI to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law, such as audits, investigations, and inspections. Oversight agencies seeking this information include government agencies that oversee the health care system, government benefit programs, other government regulatory programs and civil rights laws. Abuse or Neglect: We may disclose your PHI to a public health authority that is authorized by law to receive reports of child abuse or neglect. In addition, we may disclose your PHI if we believe that you have been a victim of abuse, neglect or domestic violence to the governmental entity or agency authorized to receive such information. In this case, the disclosure will be made consistent with the requirements of applicable federal and state laws. Food and Drug Administration: We may disclose your PHI to a person or company required by the Food and Drug Administration to report adverse events, product defects or problems, biologic product deviations, track products; to enable product recalls; to make repairs or replacements, or to conduct post marketing surveillance, as required. Legal Proceedings: We may disclose PHI in the course of any judicial or administrative proceeding, in response to an order of a court or administrative tribunal (to the extent such disclosure is expressly authorized), in certain conditions in response to a subpoena, discovery request or other lawful process. Law Enforcement: We may also disclose PHI, so long as applicable legal requirements are met, for law enforcement purposes. These law enforcement purposes include (1) legal processes and otherwise required by law, (2) limited information requests for identification and location purposes, (3) pertaining to victims of a crime, (4) suspicion that death has occurred as a result of criminal conduct, (5) in the event that a crime occurs on the premises of the practice, and (6) medical emergency (not on the Practice’s premises) and it is likely that a crime has occurred. Coroners: We may disclose PHI to a coroner or medical examiner for identification purposes, determining cause of death or for the coroner or medical examiner to perform other duties authorized by law. Research: We may disclose your PHI 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 PHI. Criminal Activity: Consistent with applicable federal and state laws, we may disclose your PHI, if we believe that the use or disclosure is necessary to prevent or lessen a serious and imminent threat to the health or safety of a person or the public. We may also disclose PHI if it is necessary for law enforcement authorities to identify or apprehend an individual. Military Activity and National Security: When the appropriate conditions apply, we may use or disclose PHI of individuals who are Armed Forces personnel (1) for activities deemed necessary by appropriate military command authorities; (2) for the purpose of a determination by the Department of Veterans Affairs of your eligibility for benefits, or (3) to foreign military authority if you are a member of that foreign military services. We may also disclose your PHI to authorized federal officials for conducting national security and intelligence activities, including for the provision of protective services to the President or others legally authorized. Workers’ Compensation: Your PHI may be disclosed by us as authorized to comply with workers’ compensation laws and other similar legally-established programs. Inmates: We may use or disclose your PHIif you are an inmate of a correctional facility and your physician created or received your protected health information in the course of providing care to you. Required Uses and Disclosures: Under the law, we must make disclosures to
you and when required by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human
Services to investigate or determine our compliance with the requirements
of Section 164.500 et. seq. 2. Your Rights Following is a statement of your rights with respect to your protected health information and a brief description of how you may exercise these rights. You have the right to inspect and copy your PHI. This means you may inspect
and obtain a copy of PHI about you that is contained in a designated record
set for as long as we maintain the PHI. A “designated record set” contains
medical and billing records and any other records that your physician and
the practice uses for making decisions about you. You have the right to request a restriction of your PHI. This means you
may ask us not to use or disclose any part of your PHI for the purposes of
treatment, payment or healthcare operations. You may also request that any
part of your PHI not be disclosed to family members or friends who may be
involved in your care or for notification purposes as described in this Notice
of Privacy Practices. Your request must state the specific restriction requested
and to whom you want the restriction to apply. You have the right to request to receive confidential communications from us by alternative means or at an alternative location. We will accommodate reasonable requests. We may also condition this accommodation by asking you for information as to how payment will be handled or specification of an alternative address or other method of contact. We will not request an explanation from you as to the basis for the request. Please make this request in writing to our Privacy Officer. You may have the right to have your physician amend your PHI. This means you may request an amendment of PHI about you in a designated record set for as long as we maintain this information. In certain cases, we may deny your request for an amendment. If we deny your request for amendment, you have the right to file a statement of disagreement with us and we may prepare a rebuttal to your statement and will provide you with a copy of any such rebuttal. Please contact our Privacy Officer to determine if you have questions about amending your medical record. You have the right to receive an accounting of certain disclosures we have made, if any, of your PHI. This right applies to disclosures for purposes other than treatment, payment or healthcare operations as described in this Notice of Privacy Practices. It excludes disclosures we may have made to you, to family members or friends involved in your care, as a result of an authorization signed by you or for notification purposes. You have the right to receive specific information regarding these disclosures that occurred after April 14, 2003. You may request them for the previous six years or a shorter timeframe. The right to receive this information is subject to certain exceptions, restrictions and limitations. Please contact our Privacy Officer to request an accounting of disclosures. You have the right to obtain a paper copy of this notice from us, upon request,
even if you have agreed to accept this notice electronically. There is a
copy of this notice on the office website, www.pourlosdds.com. 3. Complaints You may complain to us or to the Secretary of Health and Human Services if you believe your privacy rights have been violated by us. We will not retaliate against you in any way if you choose to file a complaint with us or to the US Department of Health and Human Services. You may file a complaint with us by notifying our Privacy Officer, Kristin Lankford for further information about the complaint process. KRISTIN LANKFORD
This notice was published and becomes effective on February 15, 2010. |
| ©2010 Dr. Demetrios Pourlos. all rights reserved |