About the Chad Brown Health Center

Privacy Practices (HIPAA)
Patient Rights and Responsibilities

Privacy Practices (HIPAA)

As Required by the Privacy Regulations Created as a Result of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) THE FOLLOWING DESCRIBES HOW HEALTH INFORMATION ABOUT YOU (AS A PATIENT OF THIS PRACTICE) MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED, AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO YOUR INDIVIDUALLY IDENTIFIABLE HEALTH INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW THIS NOTICE CAREFULLY.

A. OUR COMMITMENT TO YOUR PRIVACY

Our practice is dedicated to maintaining the privacy of your individually identifiable health information (IIHI). In conducting our business, we will create records regarding you and the treatment and services we provide to you. We are required by law to maintain the confidentiality of health information that identifies you. We also are required by law to provide you with this notice of our legal duties and the privacy practices that we maintain in our practice concerning your IIHI. By federal and state law, we must follow the terms of the notice of privacy practices that we have in effect at the time.

We realize that these laws are complicated, but we must provide you with the following important information:

How we may use and disclose your IIHI Your privacy rights in regard to your IIHI Our obligations concerning the use and disclosure of your IIHI

The terms of this notice apply to all records containing your IIHI that are created or retained by our practice. We reserve the right to revise or amend this Notice of Privacy Practices. Any revision or amendment to this notice will be effective for all of your records that our practice has created or maintained in the past, and for any of your records that we may create or maintain in the future. Our practice will post a copy of our current Notice in our offices in a visible location at all times, and you may request a copy of our most current Notice at any time.

B. IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS NOTICE, PLEASE CONTACT:

Sarah Perry
285 A Chad Brown Street
Providence, RI 02908
Phone: 401-274-6340 x259

C. WE MAY USE AND DISCLOSE YOUR INDIVIDUALLY IDENTIFIABLE HEALTH INFORMATION (IIHI) IN THE FOLLOWING WAYS

The following categories describe the different ways in which we may use and disclose your IIHI.

Treatment.
Our practice may use your IIHI to treat you. For example, we may ask you to have laboratory tests (such as blood or urine tests), and we may use the results to help us reach a diagnosis. We might use your IIHI in order to write a prescription for you, or we might disclose your IIHI to a pharmacy when we order a prescription for you. Many of the people who work for our practice – including, but not limited to, our doctors, nurses, physician’s assistants, nurse practitioners, and medical assistants – may use or disclose your IIHI in order to treat you or to assist others in your treatment. Additionally, we may disclose your IIHI to others who may assist in your care, such as your spouse, children or parents.
Payment.
Our practice may use and disclose your IIHI in order to bill and collect payment for the services and items you may receive from us. For example, we may contact your health insurer to certify that you are eligible for benefits (and for what range of benefits), and we may provide your insurer with details regarding your treatment to determine if your insurer will cover, or pay for, your treatment. We also may use and disclose your IIHI to obtain payment from third parties that may be responsible for such costs, such as family members. Also, we may use your IIHI to bill you directly for services and items.
Health Care Operations.
Our practice may use and disclose your IIHI to operate our business. As examples of the ways in which we may use and disclose your information for our operations, our practice may use your IIHI to evaluate the quality of care you received from us, or to conduct cost-management and business planning activities for our practice.
Appointment Reminders.
Our practice may use and disclose your IIHI to contact you and remind you of an appointment. This reminder may be in the form of a “closed” post card or message left on an answering machine or voice mail at a telephone number you provide to us.
Treatment Options.
Our practice may use and disclose your IIHI to inform you of potential treatment options or alternatives.
Communication.
Our practice may use and disclose your IIHI to communicate with you regarding health care treatment, payment or operations. This includes:
- Use of your first and last name in our waiting areas
- Use of the telephone numbers you provide us for telephone calls to you at your home, work, or cellular telephone.
- Use of electronic mail, if you contact your provider by electronic mail, and you and your provider are both willing to exchange IIHI via this method of communication.
Health-Related Benefits and Services.
Our practice may use and disclose your IIHI to inform you of health-related benefits or services that may be of interest to you.
Release of Information to Family/Friends.
Our practice may release your IIHI to a friend or family member that is involved in your care, or who assists in taking care of you. For example, a parent or guardian may ask that a babysitter take his/her child to the pediatrician’s office for treatment of a cold. In this example, the babysitter may have access to this child’s medical information.
Disclosures Required By Law.
Our practice will use and disclose your IIHI when we are required to do so by federal, state or local law.

D. USE AND DISCLOSURE OF YOUR IIHI IN CERTAIN SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES

The following categories describe unique scenarios in which we may use or disclose your identifiable health information:

Public Health Risks.
Our practice may disclose your IIHI to public health authorities that are authorized by law to collect information for the purpose of:
- Maintaining vital records, such as births and deaths
- Reporting child abuse or neglect
- Preventing or controlling disease, injury or disability
- Notifying a person regarding potential exposure to a communicable disease
- Notifying a person regarding a potential risk for spreading or contracting a disease or condition
- Reporting reactions to drugs or problems with products or devices
- Notifying individuals if a product or device they may be using has been recalled
- Notifying appropriate government agency(ies) and authority(ies) regarding the potential abuse or neglect of an adult patient (including domestic violence); however, we will only disclose this information if the patient agrees or we are required or authorized by law to disclose this information
- Notifying your employer under limited circumstances related primarily to workplace injury or illness or medical surveillance.
Health Oversight Activities.
Our practice may disclose your IIHI to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law. Oversight activities can include, for example, investigations, inspections, audits, surveys, licensure and disciplinary actions; civil, administrative, and criminal procedures or actions; or other activities necessary for the government to monitor government programs, compliance with civil rights laws and the health care system in general.
Lawsuits and Similar Proceedings.
Our practice may use and disclose your IIHI in response to a court or administrative order, if you are involved in a lawsuit or similar proceeding. We also may disclose your IIHI in response to a discovery request, subpoena, or other lawful process by another party involved in the dispute, (subject to certain conditions required by law) but only if we have made an effort to inform you of the request or to obtain an order protecting the information the party has requested.
Law Enforcement.
We may release IIHI if asked to do so by a law enforcement official:
- Regarding a crime victim in certain situations, if we are unable to obtain the person’s agreement
- Concerning a death we believe has resulted from criminal conduct
- Regarding criminal conduct at our offices
- In response to a warrant, summons, court order, subpoena or similar legal process
- To identify/locate a suspect, material witness, fugitive or missing person
- In an emergency, to report a crime (including the location or victim(s) of the crime, or the description, identity or location of the perpetrator)
Deceased Patients.
Our practice may release IIHI to a medical examiner or coroner to identify a deceased individual or to identify the cause of death.
Organ and Tissue Donation.
Our practice may release your IIHI to organizations that handle organ, eye or tissue procurement or transplantation, including organ donation banks, as necessary to facilitate organ or tissue donation and transplantation if you are an organ donor.
Research.
Our practice may use and disclose your IIHI for research purposes in certain limited circumstances. We will obtain your written authorization to use your IIHI for research purposes except when:
- our use or disclosure was approved by an Institutional Review Board or a Privacy Board;
- we obtain the oral or written agreement of a researcher that
  - the information being sought is necessary for the research study;
  - the use or disclosure of your IIHI is being used only for the research and
  - the researcher will not remove any of your IIHI from our practice; or
- the IIHI sought by the researcher only relates to decedents and the researcher agrees either orally or in writing that the use or disclosure is necessary for the research and, if we request it, to provide us with proof of death prior to access to the IIHI of the decedents.
Serious Threats to Health or Safety.
Our practice may use and disclose your IIHI when necessary to reduce or prevent a serious threat to your health and safety or the health and safety of another individual or the public. Under these circumstances, we will only make disclosures to a person or organization able to help prevent the threat.
Military.
Our practice may disclose your IIHI if you are a member of U.S. or foreign military forces (including veterans) and if required by the appropriate authorities.
National Security.
Our practice may disclose your IIHI to federal officials for intelligence and national security activities authorized by law. We also may disclose your IIHI to federal officials in order to protect the President, other officials or foreign heads of state, or to conduct investigations.
Inmates.
Our practice may disclose your IIHI to correctional institutions or law enforcement officials if you are an inmate or under the custody of a law enforcement official. Disclosure for these purposes would be necessary:
- for the institution to provide health care services to you,
- for the safety and security of the institution, and/or
- to protect your health and safety or the health and safety of other individuals.
Workers’ Compensation.
Our practice may release your IIHI for workers’ compensation and similar programs.

E. YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING YOUR IIHI

You have the following rights regarding the IIHI that we maintain about you:

Confidential Communications.
You have the right to request that our practice communicate with you about your health and related issues in a particular manner or at a certain location. For instance, you may ask that we contact you at home, rather than work. In order to request a type of confidential communication, you must make a written request to

Sarah Perry
285 A Chad Brown Street
Providence, RI 02908

specifying the requested method of contact, or the location where you wish to be contacted. Our practice will accommodate reasonable requests. You do not need to give a reason for your request.
Requesting Restrictions.
You have the right to request a restriction in our use or disclosure of your IIHI for treatment, payment or health care operations. Additionally, you have the right to request that we restrict our disclosure of your IIHI to only certain individuals involved in your care or the payment for your care, such as family members and friends. We are not required to agree to your request; however, if we do agree, we are bound by our agreement except when otherwise required by law, in emergencies, or when the information is necessary to treat you. In order to request a restriction in our use or disclosure of your IIHI, you must make your request in writing to:

Sarah Perry
285 A Chad Brown Street
Providence, RI 02908

Your request must describe in a clear and concise fashion:
- The information you wish restricted;
- Whether you are requesting to limit our practice’s use, disclosure or both; and
- To whom you want the limits to apply.
Inspection and Copies.
You have the right to inspect and obtain a copy of the IIHI that may be used to make decisions about you, including patient medical records and billing records, but not including psychotherapy notes. You must submit your request in writing to:

Sarah Perry
285 A Chad Brown Street
Providence, RI 02908

in order to inspect and/or obtain a copy of your IIHI. Our practice may charge a fee for the costs of copying, mailing, labor and supplies associated with your request. Our practice may deny your request to inspect and/or copy in certain limited circumstances; however, you may request a review of our denial. Another licensed health care professional chosen by us will conduct reviews.
Amendment.
You may ask us to amend your health information if you believe it is incorrect or incomplete, and you may 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:

Sarah Perry
285 A Chad Brown Street
Providence, RI 02908

You must provide us with a reason that supports your request for amendment. Our practice will deny your request if you fail to submit your request (and the reason supporting your request) in writing. Also, we may deny your request if you ask us to amend information that is in our opinion:
- accurate and complete;
- not part of the IIHI kept by or for the practice;
- not part of the IIHI which you would be permitted to inspect and copy; or
- not created by our practice, unless the individual or entity that created the information is not available to amend the information.
Accounting of Disclosures.
All of our patients have the right to request an “accounting of disclosures.” An “accounting of disclosures” is a list of certain non-routine disclosures our practice has made of your IIHI for non-treatment or operations purposes. Use of your IIHI as part of the routine patient care in our practice is not required to be documented. For example, the doctor sharing information with the nurse; or the billing department using your information to file your insurance claim. In order to obtain an accounting of disclosures, you must submit your request in writing to:

Sarah Perry
285 A Chad Brown Street
Providence, RI 02908

All requests for an “accounting of disclosures” must state a time period, which may not be longer than six (6) years from the date of disclosure and may not include dates before April 14, 2003. The first list you request within a 12-month period is free of charge, but our practice may charge you for additional lists within the same 12-month period. Our practice will notify you of the costs involved with additional requests, and you may withdraw your request before you incur any costs.
Right to a Paper Copy of This Notice.
You are entitled to receive a paper copy of our notice of privacy practices. You may ask us to give you a copy of this notice at any time. To obtain a paper copy of this notice, contact to:

Sarah Perry
285 A Chad Brown Street
Providence, RI 02908
Phone: 401-274-6340 x259
Right to File a Complaint.
We would appreciate your advising us first of any complaints so that we may address your concerns promptly. If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with our practice or with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. To file a complaint with our practice, all complaints must be submitted in writing to:

Sarah Perry
285 A Chad Brown Street
Providence, RI 02908
Phone: 401-274-6340 x259

You will not be penalized for filing a complaint.
Right to Provide an Authorization for Other Uses and Disclosures.
Our practice will obtain your written authorization for uses and disclosures that are not identified by this notice or permitted by applicable law. Any authorization you provide to us regarding the use and disclosure of your IIHI may be revoked at any time in writing. After you revoke your authorization, we will no longer use or disclose your IIHI for the reasons described in the authorization. Please note, we are required to retain records of your care.

Again, if you have any questions regarding this notice or our health information privacy policies, please contact to:

Sarah Perry
285 A Chad Brown Street
Providence, RI 02908
Phone: 401-274-6340 x259

Patients Rights and Responsibilities

We consider you a partner in your health care. When you are well-informed, participate in treatment decisions, and communicate openly with your providers and other health care workers, you help make your care as effective as possible. We at Chad Brown Health Center encourage respect for personal preferences and values of each individual.

YOUR RIGHTS AS A PATIENT

You have the right to considerate and respectful care.
You have the right to be well-informed about your illness, possible treatments and likely outcomes. You and members of your family are encouraged to participate in decisions regarding your care by asking questions and seeking certification on issues with your provider. You have the right to know the names and roles of people treating you. You have the tight to exclude any and all family members from participating in your health care decisions.
You have the right to satisfactory resolution of conflicts and problems regarding your care at the health center.
You have the right to refuse any treatment to the extent permitted by law. Should you refuse recommended treatment, you will receive other needed and available care.
You have the right to an advance directive, such as a Living Will, Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care, of health care proxy. These documents express your choices about future care or name someone to decide if you cannot speak for yourself. You should provide copies of your written advance directives to the health center and family members.
You have the right to privacy. The health center, your provider, and health care workers will protect your privacy as much as possible and preserve confidentiality of all records pertaining to your care.
You have the right to review your medical records and have the information explained.
You have the right to expect that the health center will deliver the necessary medical services to the best of its ability. Treatment, referral or transfer may be recommended. If transfer is recommended, you will be informed of the need for and alternatives to such a transfer.
You have the right to know if the health center has relationships with outside parties that may influence your treatment and care. These relationships may be with educational institutions, other health care providers, or insurers.
You have the right to be informed about health center rules that affect your treatment and be allowed to review and receive explanation on charges and payment methods.
You have the right to be informed about health center rules and regulations that can assist in resolving problems and conflicts concerning the care provided to you at the health center.
You have the right to be informed about and have access to protective services, such as guardianship and advocacy services.
You have the right to medical care and to exercise your rights without regard to gender, culture, economic, educational or religious background or the source of payment for care.
You have the right to have your pain treated effectively and in a timely manner while you are a patient at Chad Brown Health Center.

YOUR PARTICIPATION AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The care which you receive is partially dependent upon you acting in a cooperative manner with your health care providers, including open and honest communication, following treatment plans, and respecting the health centers standards of conduct. As a result, you are encouraged and relied upon to maintain certain responsibilities during the course of your care.

You have the responsibility to provide accurate and complete information concerning your present complaints, medical history, and other matters relating to your health.
You are encouraged to develop partnerships with your health care providers, including regular interaction and communication as well as clearly identifying whether or not you understand the course of your medical care and what is expected of you.
You are encouraged to follow the treatment plan developed by your health care team. If you have concerns about your ability to follow the plan, you are encouraged to express such concerns.
You are requested to be considerate of the rights of other patients and health center personnel.
You are requested to be respectful of health center property and the property of other persons in the health center.