Notice of Privacy Practices
At Health Roots Medicine (HRM), we are committed to protecting the privacy of your health information. This notice describes how health information about you may be used and disclosed, and how you can get access to your health information. Please review this information carefully.
Who Will Follow This Notice
The privacy practices described in this notice will be followed by all staff and/or affiliated practitioner of HRM.
Understand Your Health Record
HRM maintains a health record for each patient. Your health record consists of protected health information, such as: your symptoms, the clinician’s judgments, a plan of services, test results, diagnoses, treatment, health information for other providers, and billing and payment information about these services. This health record forms the basis for planning your care and treatment/consultation at future visits, and also serves as a means of communication among other health professionals who may contribute to your case. Understanding what information is retained in your health record and how that information may be used will assist you to ensure it is accurate and to make informed decisions about who, what, when, where, and why others may be allowed access to your protected health information.
Understand Your Health Information Rights
Your health record is the physical property of HRM, but the content is about you, and therefore belongs to you. You have the right to review or obtain a paper copy of your health record, and to request the appropriate amendments be make to your health record. You have the right to request restrictions, to authorize disclosure of the health record to others, and be given an account of those disclosures. Other than activity that has already occurred, you may revoke any further authorizations to use or disclose your protected health information. Should we need to contact you, you have the right to request communication by alternate means or to alternate locations.
Our Responsibilities
HRM is required to maintain the privacy of your protected health information and to provide you with this notice of our privacy practices. We are required to follow the terms of the Notice of Privacy Practices that is currently in effect. Other than for the reasons described in this notice, HRM agrees not to use or disclose your health information without your consent.
The privacy of the health information we record and obtain about you is protected by the law. Federal and state laws allow us to use and disclose protected health information for treatment, payment, and health care operations.
How We May Use And Disclose Protected Health Information About You
• For Treatment and Consultation — Protected health information obtained by clinicians will be recorded in your health record and used when considering your care or course of treatment.
• For Payment — We may need to give to your health insurance plan information about services you received so that you will receive reimbursement for those treatments. We will not disclose protected health information to third part payers with your authorization unless such disclosure is authorized by law.
• For Health Care Operations — We may use and disclose protected health information about you for quality control and administrative purposed. For example, we may review treatment and services and evaluate performance for our Clinicians in caring for you. We may also use or disclose your information to conduct services such as medical quality monitoring and review; accounting, legal, insurance, or risk management services; and for audit purposes.
• For Educational Purposes — We may also disclose information to other HRM clinicians for learning purposes.
Practices Regarding Disclosure of Protected Health Information
Your health information will be routinely used for treatment/consultation, payment, and quality- monitoring, and your consent, or the opportunity to agree or object, is not required in those instances:
• Treatment/consultation — Information obtained by
your clinician at HRM will be entered in your record and used to play the services provided you. Your health information may be shared with others involved in our care or providing consultation about your services. Your Clinician’s own expectation and those of others involved in our mare may also be recorded.
• Payment — Your record will be used to receive
payment for services rendered by HRM. A bill may be sent to either you or a third-party player with accompanying documentation that identifies you, your diagnosis and/or clinician’s impressions, and procedures performed.
• Quality Monitoring — The staff in this office will use
your health information to assess the care you received and compare the outcome of your care to others. Your information may be reviewed for risk management or quality improvement purposed in our efforts to continually improve the quality and effectiveness of the care and services were provide.
• Appointment reminder — We may contact you to
remind you of a appointment.
• Treatment Alternatives — we may contact you to
recommend possible other treatment options that may be of interest to you.
• News-gathering Activities — We may contact you to
see if you may be interested in participation in a news story for publication or external news media. Your written authorization is required if we would like to use or disclose any protected health information in this situation.
• Disaster-relief Efforts — In the case of a disaster, we
may disclose health information about you to disaster-relief organizations so that your family may be able to be notified of your condition, status, and location. You have the right to request that we do not disclose health information unless required for emergency response purposes.
• Military — If you are a member of the Armed Forces
or a foreign military, we may release your health information to appropriate military authorities as required or permitted by law.
• Coroners, Medical Examiner, and Funeral Directors
— We may disclose your health information to coroner or medical examiner, or to a funeral director if required for them to carry out their duties.