NOTICE OF PRIVACY PRACTICES
Minnie Hamilton Health System
186 Hospital Drive
Grantsville, WV 26147-7100
(304) 354 9244
Effective date of this notice: April 14, 2003
If you have questions about this notice, please contact the person
listed under "Whom to Contact" at the end of this notice.
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.
SUMMARY
In the course of receiving services from Minnie Hamilton Health
System (MHHS) Glenville Office, Calhoun Co. School Based System, Gilmer
Co. School Based System and Dental Office, you will provide us with
personal information about your health, with the understanding that this
information will be kept confidential. We may also obtain information
about your health from examinations, tests, or from others who have
provided you with care. This notice of our privacy practices is intended
to inform you of the ways we may use your information and the occasions
on which we may disclose this information to others.
We use patients' information when providing treatment, and we
disclose patients' information to other health care providers to assist
them to provide you with treatment. We may disclose information to
insurance companies as necessary to receive payment. In addition, we may
use the information within our organization to evaluate quality and
improve health care operations, and we may make other uses and
disclosures of patients' information as required by law or as permitted
by the covered entity policies.
KINDS OF INFORMATION THAT THIS NOTICE APPLIES TO
This notice applies to your personal health information, consisting
of any information in our possession that would allow someone to
identify you and learn something about your health.
WHO MUST ABIDE BY THIS NOTICE
- Minnie Hamilton Health System, Inc. (MHHS) and its satellites
(Gilmer Primary Care Center, Calhoun Co. School Based System, Gilmer
Co. School Based System, Calhoun Dental/Medical Center).
- All employees, staff, students, volunteers and other personnel
whose work is under the direct control of MHHS and its satellites.
The people and organizations to which this notice applies (referred
to as "we," "our," and "us") have agreed to abide by its terms. We may
share your information with each other for purposes of treatment, and as
necessary for payment and operations activities as described below.
OUR LEGAL DUTIES
- We are required by law to maintain the privacy of your health
information.
- We are required to provide this notice of our privacy practices
and legal duties regarding health information to anyone who asks for
it.
- We are required to abide by the terms of this notice until we
officially adopt a new notice.
HOW WE MAY USE OR DISCLOSE YOUR HEALTH
INFORMATION
We may use your health information, or disclose it to others, for a
number of different reasons. This notice describes these reasons. For
each reason, we have written a brief explanation. We also provide some
examples. These examples do not include all of the specific ways we may
use or disclose your information. But any time we use your information,
or disclose it to someone else, it will fit one of the reasons listed
here.
- Treatment. We will use your health
information to provide you with medical care and services. This
means that our employees, staff, students, volunteers and others
whose work is under our direct control, may read your health
information to learn about your medical condition and use it to make
decisions about your care. For instance, a hospital nurse may read
your medical chart in order to care for you properly. We will also
disclose your information to others who need it in order to provide
you with medical treatment or services. For instance, we may send
your doctor the results of laboratory tests we perform.
- Payment. We will use your health
information, and disclose it to others, as necessary to obtain
payment for the services we provide to you. For instance, an
employee in our business office may use your health information to
prepare a bill. And we may send that bill, and any health
information it contains, to your insurance company. We may also
disclose some of your health information to companies with whom we
contract for payment-related services. For instance, we may give
information about you to a collection company that we contract with
to collect bills for us. We will not use or disclose more
information for payment purposes than is necessary.
- Health Care Operations. We may use
your health information for activities that are necessary to operate
this organization. This includes reading your health information to
review the performance of our staff. We may also use your
information and the information of other patients to plan what
services we need to provide, expand, or reduce. We may also provide
health information to students who are authorized to receive
training here. We may disclose your health information as necessary
to others who we contract with to provide administrative services.
This includes our lawyers, auditors, accreditation services, and
consultants, for instance.
- Legal Requirement to Disclose
Information. We will disclose your information when we are
required by law to do so. This includes reporting information to
government agencies that have the legal responsibility to monitor
the health care system. For instance, we may be required to disclose
your health information, and the information of others, if we are
audited by Medicare or Medicaid. We will also disclose your health
information when we are required to do so by a court order or other
judicial or administrative process.
- Public Health Activities. We will
disclose your health information when required to do so for public
health purposes. This includes reporting certain diseases, births,
deaths, and reactions to certain medications. It may also include
notifying people who have been exposed to a disease.
- To Report Abuse. We may disclose your
health information when the information relates to a victim of
abuse, neglect or domestic violence. We will make this report only
in accordance with laws that require or allow such reporting, or
with your permission.
- Law Enforcement. We may disclose your
health information for law enforcement purposes. This includes
providing information to help locate a suspect, fugitive, material
witness or missing person, or in connection with suspected criminal
activity. We must also disclose your health information to a federal
agency investigating our compliance with federal privacy
regulations.
- Specialized Purposes. We may disclose
the health information of members of the armed forces as authorized
by military command authorities. We may disclose your health
information for a number of other specialized purposes. We will only
disclose as much information as is necessary for the purpose. For
instance, we may disclose your information to coroners, medical
examiners and funeral directors; to organ procurement organizations
(for organ, eye, or tissue donation); or for national security,
intelligence, and protection of the president. We also may disclose
health information about an inmate to a correctional institution or
to law enforcement officials, to provide the inmate with health
care, to protect the health and safety of the inmate and others, and
for the safety, administration, and maintenance of the correctional
institution. We may also disclose your health information to your
employer for purposes of workers' compensation and work site safety
laws (OSHA, for instance).
- To Avert a Serious Threat. We may
disclose your health information if we decide that the disclosure is
necessary to prevent serious harm to the public or to an individual.
The disclosure will only be made to someone who is able to prevent
or reduce the threat.
- Family and Friends. We may disclose
your health information to a member of your family or to someone
else who is involved in your medical care or payment for care. We
may notify family or friends if you are in the hospital, and tell
them your general condition. In the event of a disaster, we may
provide information about you to a disaster relief organization so
they can notify your family of your condition and location. We will
not disclose your information to family or friends if you object.
- Facility Directory. We may list you
in our directory if you are admitted to the hospital. The directory
listing includes name and location in the hospital. We will also
list your religion in the directory, but will disclose that
information only to members of the clergy. Except for members of the
clergy, we will only disclose the information in the directory to
visitors who ask for you by name. If you ask, we will not list you
in the directory, or we will omit any information you ask us to
omit.
- Research. We may disclose your health
information in connection with medical research projects. Federal
rules govern any disclosure of your health information for research
purposes without your authorization.
- Information to Patients. We may use
your health information to provide you with additional information.
This may include sending appointment reminders to your address. This
may also include giving you information about treatment options or
other health-related services that we provide.
- Fund Raising. We may use your
information to contact you to ask for donations to the covered
entity. We may disclose your information to a related foundation for
the same purpose. If you do not want us to do this, contact the
person listed under "Whom to Contact" at the end of this notice.
- Health Benefits Information. Your
health information may be disclosed by the MHHS employee health
benefit program to the Human Resource Director or his designee, as
necessary for the administration of the health benefit program.
Employees who receive this information have special rules to prevent
the misuse of your information for other purposes.
YOUR RIGHTS
- Authorization. We will not use or
disclose your health information for any purpose that is not listed
in this notice without your written authorization. If you authorize
us to use or disclose your health information, you have the right to
revoke the authorization at any time. For information about how to
authorize us to use or disclose your health information, or about
how to revoke an authorization, contact the person listed under
"Whom to Contact" at the end of this notice. You may not revoke an
authorization for us to use and disclose your information to the
extent that we have taken action in reliance on the authorization.
If the authorization is to permit disclosure of your information to
an insurance company, as a condition of obtaining coverage, other
law may allow the insurer to continue to use your information to
contest claims or your coverage, even after you have revoked the
authorization.
- Request Restrictions. You have the
right to ask us to restrict how we use or disclose your health
information. We will consider your request. But we are not required
to agree. If we do agree, we will comply with the request unless the
information is needed to provide you with emergency treatment. We
cannot agree to restrict disclosures that are required by law.
- Confidential Communication. You have
the right to ask us to communicate with you at a special address or
by a special means. For example, you may ask us to send mail to a
different address rather than to your home. Or you may ask us to
speak to you personally on the telephone rather than sending your
health information by mail. We will not ask you to explain why you
are making the request. We will agree to any reasonable request.
- Inspect And Receive a Copy of Health
Information. You have a right to inspect the health information
about you that we have in our records, and to receive a copy of it.
This right is limited to information about you that is kept in
records that are used to make decisions about you. For instance,
this includes medical and billing records. If you want to review or
receive a copy of these records, you must make the request in
writing. We may charge a fee for the cost of copying and mailing the
records. To ask to inspect your records, or to receive a copy,
contact the person listed under "Whom to Contact" at the end of this
notice. We will respond to your request within 30 days. We may deny
you access to certain information. If we do, we will give you the
reason, in writing. We will also explain how you may appeal the
decision.
- Amend Health Information. You have
the right to ask us to amend health information about you which you
believe is not correct, or not complete. You must make this request
in writing, and give us the reason you believe the information is
not correct or complete. We will respond to your request in writing
within 30 days. We may deny your request if we did not create the
information, if it is not part of the records we use to make
decisions about you, if the information is something you would not
be permitted to inspect or copy, or if it is complete and accurate.
- Accounting of Disclosures. You have a
right to receive an accounting of certain disclosures of your
information to others. This accounting will list the times we have
given your health information to others. The list will include dates
of the disclosures, the names of the people or organizations to whom
the information was disclosed, a description of the information, and
the reason. We will provide the first list of disclosures you
request at no charge. We may charge you for any additional lists you
request during the following 12 months. You must tell us the time
period you want the list to cover. You may not request a time period
longer than six years. We cannot include disclosures made before
April 14, 2003. Disclosures for the following reasons will not be
included on the list: disclosures for treatment, payment, health
care operations; disclosures of information in a facility directory,
disclosures for national security purposes, disclosures to
correctional or law enforcement personnel, disclosures that you have
authorized, and disclosures made directly to you.
- Paper Copy of this Privacy Notice.
You have a right to receive a
paper copy this
notice. If you have received this notice electronically, you may
receive a paper copy by contacting the person listed under "Whom to
Contact" at the end of this notice.
- Complaints. You have a right to
complain about our privacy practices, if you think your privacy has
been violated. You may file your complaint with the person listed
under "Whom to Contact" at
the end of this notice. You may also file a complaint directly with
the Secretary of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services,
at the Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services, 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Room 509F HHH Bldg.,
Washington, D.C. 20201. All complaints must be in writing. We will
not take any retaliation against you if you file a complaint.
OUR RIGHT TO CHANGE THIS NOTICE
We reserve the right to change our privacy practices, as described in
this notice, at any time. We reserve the right to apply these changes to
any health information which we already have, as well as to health
information we receive in the future. Before we make any change in the
privacy practices described in this notice, we will write a new notice
that includes the change. We will post the new notice in our
registration area as well as on our web site. The new notice will
include an effective date.
WHOM TO CONTACT
Contact the person listed below:
Copies of this notice are also available at our registration area.
This notice is also available by e-mail. Contact the person named above,
or send e-mail to:
privacyofficer@mhhcc
This notice is also available on our Web site: www.mhhcc.com.
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