{"id":51,"date":"2018-10-11T23:33:56","date_gmt":"2018-10-11T23:33:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/192.168.1.67\/sandiegoent\/?page_id=51"},"modified":"2019-10-04T15:40:43","modified_gmt":"2019-10-04T22:40:43","slug":"hipaa-statement","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sandiegoent.com\/resources\/hipaa-statement\/","title":{"rendered":"HIPAA Statement"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Notice of Privacy Practices<\/strong>
\n
\n
\nThis notice describes how information about you may be used and disclosed
\nand how you can get access to this information. Please review it carefully.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you have any questions about this notice, please contact our Practice.This Practice\u2019s Legal Duty<\/strong>

This Practice is required by law to maintain the privacy of protected health information, to provide individuals with a notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to protected health information, and to abide by the terms of the information practices that are described in this Notice of Privacy Practices (\u201cNotice\u201d). This Notice will be provided to our patients no later than the date of the first service delivery, including service delivered electronically. We will post this Notice in a clear and prominent location where it will be accessible for you to read.

Background<\/strong>

Timely, accurate, and complete health information must be collected, maintained, and made available to members of an individual’s healthcare team so that members of the team can accurately diagnose and care for that individual. Most consumers understand and have no objections to this use of their information. On the other hand, consumers may not be aware of the fact that their health information may also be used as:


1. A legal document describing the care rendered;
2. Verification of services for which the individual or a third-party payer is billed;
3. A tool in evaluating the adequacy and appropriateness of care;
4. A tool in educating health professionals;
5. A source of data for research;
6. A source of information for tracking disease so that public health officials can manage and improve the health of the nation; and\/or
7. A source of data for facility planning and\/or marketing.


Increasingly, consumers want to be informed about what information is collected and to have some control over how their protected health information is used. With this in mind, the federal government and some states have passed legislation requiring that health plans, healthcare clearinghouses, and healthcare providers furnish individuals with a notice of information privacy practices. The federal standards for privacy of individually identifiable health information (also known as the HIPAA privacy rule), require that except for certain variations or exceptions for health plans and correctional facilities, an individual has a right to a notice as to the uses and disclosures of protected health information that may be made by the covered entity, as well as the individual’s rights, and the covered entity’s legal duties with respect to protected health information.

Who Will Follow This Notice:<\/strong>

This Notice describes our practices and that of:
1. Any health care professional authorized to enter information into your chart;
2. All departments and units of the Practice;
3. Any member of a volunteer group we allow to help you while you are a patient;
4. All employees, staff and other personnel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


All of these individuals, entities, sites and locations follow the terms of this Notice. In addition, these sites and locations may share medical information with each other for treatment, payment or Practice operations described in this notice.

Understanding Your Health Record\/Information<\/strong>

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, often referred to as your health or medical record, may serve as a:

1. Basis for planning your care and treatment;
2. Means of communication among the many health professionals who contribute to your care;
3. Legal document describing the care you received;
4. Means by which you or a third-party payer can verify that services billed were actually provided;
5. Tool in educating health professionals;
6. Source of data for medical research;
7. Source of information for public health officials charged with improving the health of the nation;
8. Source of data for facility planning and\/or marketing; and\/or
9. Tool with which this Practice can assess and continually work to improve the care we render and outcomes we achieve.

Understanding what is in your record and how your health information is used helps you to:<\/strong>

1. Ensure its accuracy;
2. Better understand who, what, when, where, and why others may access your health information;
3. Make more informed decisions when authorizing disclosure to others<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your Health Information Rights<\/strong>
\n
\nAlthough your health record is the physical property of the healthcare\npractitioner or facility that compiled it, the information belongs to you. You\nhave the right to:
\n
\n1. Request a restriction on certain uses and disclosures of your information as\nprovided
\nby 45 CFR 164.522;
\n2. Request and keep a copy of this notice of information practices upon your\nrequest, and inspect and obtain a copy of your health record as provided for in\n45 CFR 164.524;
\n3. Amend your health record as provided in 45 CFR 164.528;
\n4. Obtain an accounting of disclosures of your health information as provided\nin 45 CFR 164.528;
\n5. Request communications of your health information by alternative means or at\nalternative locations;
\n6. Revoke your authorization to use or disclose health information except to\nthe extent that action has already been taken.
\n
\nThe Practice’s Responsibilities and Our Pledge to You<\/strong>
\n
\nWe understand that medical information about you and your health is personal.\nWe are committed to protecting medical information about you. We create a\nrecord of the care and services you receive at this Practice. We need this\nrecord to provide you with quality care and to comply with certain legal\nrequirements. This notice applies to all of the records of your care generated\nby the Practice. This notice will tell you about the ways in which we may use\nand disclose medical information about you. We also describe your rights and\ncertain obligations we have regarding the use and disclosure of medical\ninformation.
\n
\nThis Practice is required by law to:<\/strong>
\n
\n1. Maintain the privacy of your health information;
\n2. Provide you with a notice as to our legal duties and privacy practices with\nrespect to information we collect and maintain about you;
\n3. Abide by the terms of this notice;
\n4. Notify you if we are unable to agree to a requested restriction; and to
\n5. Accommodate reasonable requests to communicate health information by\nalternative means or alterative locations.
\n
\nWe will not use or disclose your health information without your authorization,\nexcept as described in this notice.
\n
\n
\nHow We Will Use and Disclose Medical Information About You<\/strong>
\n
\nWe will use your health information for treatment<\/em>
\n
\nWe may use medical information about you to provide you with medical treatment\nor services. Information obtained by members of your healthcare team will be\nrecorded in your record and used by personnel to determine the course of\ntreatment that should work best for you. Your physician will document in your\nrecord his or her expectations of the members of your healthcare team. Members\nof your healthcare team will then record the actions they took and their\nobservations. In that way, the physician will know how you are responding to\ntreatment. We will also provide your subsequent healthcare provider with copies\nof various reports that should assist him or her in treating you once your\ntreatment with our Practice is completed.
\n
\nAdditionally, different departments of this Practice may also share medical\ninformation about you in order to coordinate the different things you need,\nsuch as prescriptions, lab work and x-rays. We also may disclose medical\ninformation about you to individuals outside the Practice who may be involved\nin your medical care, such as family members, clergy or others we use to\nprovide services that are part of your care. For example:<\/strong> Another\ndoctor treating you for a broken leg may need to know if you have diabetes\nbecause diabetes may slow the healing process. In addition the doctor may need\nto tell the dietitian in the hospital if you have diabetes so that they can\narrange for appropriate meals.
\n
\nWe will use your health information for payment<\/em>
\n
\nWe will use and disclose medical information about you so that the treatment\nand services you receive from the Practice may be billed to and payment may be\ncollected from you, an insurance company or a third party. We may also tell\nyour health plan about a treatment you are going to receive to obtain prior\napproval or to determine whether your plan will cover the treatment.
\nFor example:<\/strong> A bill may be sent to you or a third-party payer. The\ninformation on or accompanying the bill may include information that identifies\nyou, as well as your diagnosis, procedures, and supplies used.
\n
\nWe will use your health information for regular health operations<\/em>
\n
\nWe may use and disclose medical information about you for this Practice’s\noperations. Members of the medical staff or members of the quality improvement\nteam may use information in your health record to assess the care and outcomes\nin your care and others like it. This information will then be used in an\neffort to continually improve the quality and effectiveness of the healthcare\nservices we provide. For example:<\/strong> We may use medical\ninformation to review our treatment and services and to evaluate the\nperformance of our staff in caring for you. We may also combine medical\ninformation about many Practice patients to decide what additional services\nthis Practice should offer, what services are not needed, and whether certain\nnew treatments are effective. We may also disclose information to our personnel\nfor review and education purposes. We may also combine the medical information\nwe have with medical information from other practices to compare how we are\ndoing and see where we can make improvements in the care and services we offer.\nWe may remove information that identifies you from this set of medical\ninformation so others may use it to study health care and health care delivery\nwithout learning who the specific patients are.
\n
\nAppointment reminders<\/em>
\n
\nWe may use and disclose medical information to contact you as a reminder that\nyou have an appointment for treatment or medical care at the Practice.
\n
\nTreatment alternatives<\/em>
\n
\nWe may use and disclose medical information to tell you about health-related\nbenefits or alternate treatment services that may be of interest to you.
\n
\nBusiness Associates<\/em>
\n
\nThere are some services provided by our Practice through contracts with\nbusiness associates, Examples could include certain laboratory tests,\ntranscription services or billing company services. The types of services for\nwhich this Practice contracts with business associates may change from time to\ntime. When these services are contracted, we may disclose your health\ninformation to our business associate so that they can perform the job we’ve\nasked them to do and bill you or your third-party payer for services rendered.\nTo protect your health information, however, we require the business associate\nto appropriately safeguard your information.
\n
\nNotification<\/em>
\n
\nWe may use or disclose information to notify or assist in notifying a family\nmember, personal representative, or another person responsible for your care,\nof your location and general condition.
\n
\nCommunications with family or individuals involved in your care or payment\nfor your care<\/em>
\n
\nHealth professionals, using their best judgment, may disclose to a family\nmember, other relative, close personal friend, or any other person you\nidentify<\/strong>, health information relevant to that person’s involvement in your\ncare or payment related to your care. We may also give information to someone\nwho just helps pay for your care. Additionally, we may disclose medical\ninformation about you to an entity assisting in a disaster relief.
\n
\nResearch<\/em>
\n
\nIf physicians in this Practice participate in a clinical study or other research\nwith you, we may disclose information to researchers if such research has been\napproved by an institutional review board that has reviewed the research\nproposal and has established protocols to ensure the privacy of your health\ninformation.
\n
\nCoroners, medical examiners, and funeral directors
\n<\/em>
\nWe may disclose health information to a funeral director consistent with\napplicable law to carry out their duties. We may also release medical\ninformation to a coroner or medical examiner in order to identify a deceased\nperson or determine the cause of death.
\n
\n
\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Organ procurement organizations<\/em>
\n
\nConsistent with applicable law, we may disclose health information to organ\nprocurement organizations or other entities engaged in the procurement,\nbanking, or transplantation of organs for the purpose of tissue donation and\ntransplant.
\n
\nMarketing
\n
\nWe may contact you to provide appointment reminders or information about new\ntreatment alternatives or other health-related benefits and services that may\nbe of interest to you.
\n
\nFood and Drug Administration (FDA)<\/em>
\n
\nWe may disclose to the FDA health information relative to adverse events with\nrespect to food, supplements, product and product defects, or post marketing\nsurveillance information to enable product recalls, repairs, or replacement.
\n
\nWorkers compensation<\/em>
\n
\nWe may disclose health information to the extent authorized by and to the\nextent necessary to comply with laws relating to workers compensation or other\nsimilar programs established by law.
\n
\nPublic health<\/em>
\n
\nAs required by law, we may disclose your health information to public health or\nlegal authorities charged with preventing or controlling disease, injury or\ndisability, reporting births and deaths, reporting child abuse or neglect,\nreporting reactions to medications or problems with products, notifying people\nof recalls of products they may be using or notifying the appropriate\ngovernment authority if we believe a patient has been the victim of abuse,\nneglect or domestic violence.
\n
\nCorrectional institution<\/em>
\n
\nShould you be an inmate of a correctional institution, we may\ndisclose to the institution or agents thereof health information necessary for\nyour health and the health and safety of other individuals.
\n
\nLaw enforcement<\/em>
\n
\nWe may disclose health information for law enforcement purposes as required by\nlaw or in response to a valid subpoena, court order, warrant, summons or\nsimilar process. We may also release medical information, if asked to do so by\na law enforcement official, to identify the victim of a crime (if we are unable\nto obtain the person’s agreement), to find out about a death we believe may be\nthe result of criminal conduct, to find out about criminal conduct at this\nPractice, and in emergency circumstances to report a crime.
\n
\nFederal law makes provision for your health information to be released to an\nappropriate health oversight agency, public health authority, or attorney,\nprovided that a work force member or business associate believes in good faith\nthat we have engaged in unlawful conduct or have otherwise violated\nprofessional or clinical standards and are potentially endangering patient(s),\nworkers, or the public.
\n
\nMilitary and veterans<\/em>
\n
\nIf you are a member of the armed forces, we may release medical information\nabout you as required by military command authorities. We may also release\nmedical information about foreign military personnel to the appropriate foreign\nmilitary authority.
\n
\nLawsuits and disputes
\n<\/em>
\nIf you are involved in a lawsuit or a dispute, we may disclose medical\ninformation about you in response to a court or administrative order. We may\nalso disclose medical information about you in response to a subpoena,\ndiscovery request, or other lawful process by someone else involved in the\ndispute, but only if efforts have been made to tell you about the request or to\nobtain an order protecting the information requested.
\n
\nNational security and intelligence activities<\/em>
\n
\nWe may release medical information about you to authorized federal officials\nfor intelligence, counterintelligence, and other national security activities\nauthorized by law.
\n
\nProtective services for the President and others<\/em>
\n
\nWe may disclose medical information about you to authorized federal officials\nso they may provide protection to the President, other authorized persons or\nforeign heads of state or conduct special investigations.
\n
\nYour Rights Regarding Medical Information About You<\/strong>
\n
\nYou have the following rights regarding medical information we maintain about\nyou:
\n
\nRight to inspect and copy<\/em>
\n
\nYou have the right to inspect and copy medical information that may be used to\nmake decisions about your care (you must allow us a reasonable time to delivery\ncopies of your medical information). Usually, this includes medical and billing\nrecords, but does not include psychotherapy notes.
\n
\nTo inspect and copy medical information that may be used to make decisions\nabout you, you must submit your request in writing to this Practice. If you\nrequest a copy of the information, we may charge a fee for the costs of\ncopying, mailing, or other supplies associated with your request.
\n
\nWe may deny your request to inspect and copy in certain very limited\ncircumstances. If you are denied access to medical information, you may request\nthat the denial be reviewed. Another licensed healthcare professional chosen by\nthis Practice will review your request and the denial. The person conducting\nthe review will not be the person who denied your request. We will comply with\nthe outcome of the review.
\n
\nRight to amend<\/em>
\n
\nIf you feel that medical information we have about you is incorrect\nor incomplete, you may ask us to amend the information. You have the\nright to request an amendment for as long as the information is kept by or for\nthe Practice.
\n
\nTo request an amendment, your request must be made in writing and submitted to\nthis Practice. In addition, you must provide a reason that supports your\nrequest.
\n
\nWe may deny your request for an amendment if it is not in writing or does not\ninclude a reason to support the request. In addition, we may deny your request\nif you ask us to amend information that:
\n
\n1. Was not created by us, unless the person or entity that created the\ninformation is no longer available to make the amendment;
\n2. Is not part of the medical information kept by or for the Practice;
\n3. Is not part of the information which you would be permitted to inspect and\ncopy; or
\n4. Is accurate and complete.
\n
\nRight to an accounting of disclosures<\/em>
\n
\nYou have the right to request an “accounting of disclosures.” This is\na list of the disclosures we made of medical information about you. To request\nthis list or accounting of disclosures you must submit your request in writing\nto this Practice. Your request must state a time period that may not be longer\nthan six years. Your request should indicate in what form you want the list\n(for example, on paper or electronically). The first list you request within a\n12-month period will be free; we may charge you for the costs of providing\nadditional lists. We will notify you of the costs involved and you may choose\nto withdraw or modify your request at any time before any costs are incurred.
\n
\nRight to request restrictions<\/em>
\n
\nYou have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the medical\ninformation we use or disclose about you for treatment, payment or health care\noperations. You also have the right to request a limit on the medical\ninformation we disclose about you to someone who is involved in your care or\nthe payment for your care, like a family member or friend.
\n
\nFor example:<\/strong> You could ask that we not use or disclose information\nabout a surgery you had.
\n
\nWe are not required to agree to your request<\/em>. If we do agree, we will\ncomply with your request unless the information is needed to provide you with\nemergency treatment. We will advise you regarding whether or not we agree to\ncomply with your request.
\n
\nTo request restrictions, you must make your request in writing to this\nPractice. In your request, you must tell us (1) what information you want to\nlimit; (2) whether you want to limit our use, disclosure or both; and (3) to\nwhom you want the limits to apply.
\n
\nFor example:<\/strong> Disclosures to your spouse.
\n
\nRight to request confidential communication<\/em>
\n
\nYou have the right to request that we communicate with you about medical\nmatters in a certain way or at a certain location.
\n
\nFor example:<\/strong> You can ask that we only contact you at work or by\nmail.
\n
\nTo request confidential communications, you must make your request in writing\nto this Practice. We will not ask you the reason for your request. We will\naccommodate all reasonable requests. Your request must specify how or where you\nwish to be contacted.
\n
\nRight to a paper copy of this notice<\/em>
\n
\nYou have the right to a paper copy of this notice. You may ask us to give you a\ncopy of this notice at any time. Even if you have agreed to receive this notice\nelectronically, you are still entitled to a paper copy of this notice. You may\nobtain a copy of this notice at our Practice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


\nChanges to this notice
\n<\/em>
\nWe reserve the right to change this notice at any time. We reserve the right to\nmake the revised or changed notice effective for medical information we already\nhave about you as well as any information we receive in the future. We will\npost a copy of the current notice in the waiting room of the Practice. The\nnotice will contain on the first page, in the top right-hand comer, the\n“Effective Date”. In addition, each time you register at or are\nadmitted to this Practice for treatment or health care services, we will make\navailable to you a copy of the current notice in effect. We will post all new\nnotices in the waiting room of the Practice. You can request a copy of our\nnotice at any time.
\n
\nShould we revise this notice because of a material change to the uses or\ndisclosures of protected health information, to individual’s rights, to our\nlegal duties, or to other privacy practices stated in the notice, we\nwill promptly revise and make available the new notice. Except when required by\nlaw, a material change in any term of the notice may not be implemented prior\nto the Effective Date of the notice in which such material change is reflected.\nPursuant to the HIPAA privacy regulations, we will document compliance with the\nnotice requirements by retaining copies of all notices issued.
\n
\nOther uses of medical information<\/em>
\n
\nOther uses and disclosures of medical information not covered by this notice or\nthe laws that apply to us will be made only with your written authorization.\nYou may request in writing that we not use or disclose your information for\ntreatment, payment and administrative purposes except when specifically\nauthorized by you, when required by law, or in emergency circumstances. We will\nconsider your request but are not legally required to accept it. If you provide\nus authorization to use or disclose medical information about you, you may\nrevoke that authorization, in writing, at any time. If you revoke your\nauthorization, we will no longer use or disclose medical information about you\nfor the reasons covered by your written authorization. You understand that we\nare unable to take back any disclosures we have already made with your\nauthorization, and that we are required to retain our records of the care that\nwe provided to you.
\n
\nProviding care to our workforce – This provision only applies to health care\nprovided to our work force<\/em>.
\n
\nAs a HIPAA covered healthcare provider that occasionally provides care to our\nwork force for medical surveillance, work-related illness, or injury, we must\nprovide written notice to individuals seeking such care at the time healthcare\nis provided or we must post this notice in a prominent place at the location\nwhere the healthcare is provided.
\n
\nConfidentiality of drug and alcohol abuse patient records<\/em>
\n
\nThe confidentiality of alcohol and drug abuse patient records rules in HIPAA\nestablish the following notice provisions for patients of federally assisted\ndrug or alcohol abuse programs:
\n
\n1. At the time of admission or as soon thereafter as the patient is capable of\nrational communication, each substance abuse program shall communicate to the\npatient that federal law and regulations protect the confidentiality of alcohol\nand drug abuse patient records;
\n2. The program must provide the patient with a written summary of the federal\nlaw and regulations;
\n3. The program may not say to a person outside the program that a patient\nattends the program, or disclose any information identifying a patient as an\nalcohol or drug abuser unless the patient consents in writing, the disclosure\nis allowed by court order, or the disclosure is made to medical personnel in a\nmedical emergency or to qualified personnel for research, audit, or program\nevaluation.
\n
\n
\nViolation of the federal law and regulations by a program is a crime and\nsuspected violations may be reported to appropriate authorities in accordance\nwith federal regulations.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Federal law and regulations do not protect any information about\na crime committed by a patient either at the Practice or against any person who\nworks for the Practice, or about any threat to commit such a crime.
\n
\nFederal laws and regulations do not protect any information about suspected\nchild abuse or neglect from being reported under state law to appropriate state\nor local authorities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Notice of Privacy Practices This notice describes how information about you may be used and disclosed and how you can get access to this information. Please review it carefully. If you have any questions about this notice, please contact our Practice.This Practice\u2019s Legal Duty This Practice is required by law to maintain the privacy of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":113,"menu_order":8,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","schema":"","fname":"","lname":"","position":"","credentials":"","placeID":"","no_match":false,"name":"","company":"","review":"","address":"","city":"","state":"","zip":"","lat":"","lng":"","phone1":"","phone2":"","fax":"","mon1":"","mon2":"","tue1":"","tue2":"","wed1":"","wed2":"","thu1":"","thu2":"","fri1":"","fri2":"","sat1":"","sat2":"","sun1":"","sun2":"","hours-note":"","footnotes":""},"service_tags":[],"class_list":["post-51","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandiegoent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/51","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandiegoent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandiegoent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegoent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegoent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegoent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/51\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegoent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/113"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sandiegoent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"service_tags","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sandiegoent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/service_tags?post=51"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}