Privacy Guidelines
> Summary of Privacy Practices
We are committed to safeguarding your protected health information that we maintain in a manner consistent with the HIPAA Act of 1996, and with other relevant state requirements. When we say “protected health information,” we mean treatment, payment or health information that identifies you. Attached is the Pressley Ridge Notice of Privacy Practices. The Notice explains how we meet this commitment. The Notice of Privacy Practices explains your legal rights related to your protected health information, and will also explain the privacy practices that we are legally required to follow.
THIS SUMMARY IS NOT A COMPLETE LISTING OF HOW WE USE AND DISCLOSE (SHARE) YOUR INFORMATION. YOU MUST READ THE NOTICE OF PRIVACY PRACTICES FOR A FULL LISTING OF ALL OF YOUR PRIVACY RIGHTS.
There are some uses and disclosures that will require your specific authorization, and there are others that do not. These are described in your Notice and are summarized here:
Without your consent, Pressley Ridge can use and share your information to:
- Provide you with treatment
- Receive payment for services either directly from you, or indirectly through managed care, Medicare, Medicaid, or any other authorized agency that would process your health insurance claims.
- Perform Health Care Operations, such as internal audits to review the quality of treatment provided to you. We may also provide necessary portions of your protected health information to our accountants, attorneys and consultants in order to make sure we remain in compliance with all existing laws and regulations. However, if your protected health information concerns certain types of mental health diagnosis and treatment, drug and alcohol abuse treatment, or HIV status, we may be limited to what information we can provide, and may be required to obtain specific release authorization from you under certain circumstances. While Pressley Ridge may use or disclose your protected health information for purposes of treatment, payment or health care operations, we may not use or disclose your information for any additional purposes, such as research, certain kinds of marketing, and fundraising without your consent.
- Comply with other uses and disclosures permitted by federal law. These are listed and explained in your Notice;
There are certain uses and disclosures that require you to specifically agree or object, such as general identifying information in a program directory, or in cases where next of kin are notified.
In situations other than those outlined above, we will ask for your written authorization before using or disclosing your protected health information. You may later revoke this authorization, you may do so in writing. Such a revocation would apply only to future uses and disclosures, excluding those that we have already acted upon based on the original authorization.
You have the following rights concerning your protected health information:
- The right to request limits on uses and disclosures of your health information;
- The right to choose how we send health information to you or how we contact you;
- The right to see or to get a copy of your protected health information;
- The right to receive a list of certain disclosures of your health information that we have made
- The right to ask to correct or update your health information;
- The right to get a paper copy of this notice.
These rights are each explained in the Notice of Privacy Practices, and are applicable under the conditions and guidelines listed.
If you have any questions or concerns about anything discussed in this Notice or about any of our privacy practices, you may contact the Pressley Ridge Privacy Officer. You may also file a written complaint if you feel your privacy rights have been violated. You also have the right to file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights. The regional addresses are each listed in your Notice.
Please note that Pressley Ridge will not take any retaliatory action against you or anyone acting on your behalf for lodging a complaint, provided that the complaint is lodged with the good faith belief that the practice opposed is unlawful.
This Summary Notice takes effect on July 1, 2006.
Click here to view Pressley Ridge's Notice of Privacy Practices