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.
PNW Virtual Health is committed to protecting the privacy of your protected health information (PHI) in accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and all other applicable federal and state laws. This Notice of Privacy Practices describes how we may use and disclose your PHI to carry out treatment, payment, and healthcare operations, and for other purposes that are permitted or required by law. It also describes your rights regarding your PHI.
Who This Notice Applies To: This notice applies to PNW Virtual Health, its workforce members (employees, volunteers, trainees, and other personnel), and any business associates and their subcontractors.
Understanding Your Protected Health Information (PHI): PHI refers to any information about your health, healthcare services, or payment for healthcare services that can be used to identify you. This includes, but is not limited to, your name, address, birth date, medical records, billing information, and any other information that identifies you as a patient.
How We May Use and Disclose Your PHI:
We may use and disclose your PHI for the following purposes without your express authorization:
- Treatment: We may use and disclose your PHI to provide, coordinate, and manage your healthcare and any related services. This includes sharing information with other healthcare providers involved in your care, such as specialists, pharmacists, or laboratories, to ensure comprehensive and continuous care. For example, your provider at PNW Virtual Health may share your medical history with a consulting specialist for a second opinion.
- Payment: We may use and disclose your PHI to obtain payment for the healthcare services we provide to you. This includes activities such as billing your insurance company, determining eligibility or coverage, and processing claims. For example, we may send your diagnosis and treatment information to your health plan for reimbursement.
- Healthcare Operations: We may use and disclose your PHI for our internal operations necessary to run PNW Virtual Health and ensure quality care. These activities include, but are not limited to, quality assessment and improvement activities, training programs, credentialing, legal and auditing services, and business planning and development. For example, we may use your health information to review our services and evaluate the performance of our staff.
Uses and Disclosures Requiring Your Authorization:
For any purposes other than those described above (treatment, payment, and healthcare operations), we will obtain your written authorization before using or disclosing your PHI. This includes:
- Most uses and disclosures of psychotherapy notes.
- Uses and disclosures for marketing purposes.
- Disclosures that constitute a “sale” of PHI.
You have the right to revoke your authorization at any time, in writing, except to the extent that we have already acted in reliance on your authorization.
Our Responsibilities:
PNW Virtual Health is required by law to:
- Maintain the privacy and security of your PHI.
- Provide you with this Notice of Privacy Practices.
- Abide by the terms of this Notice currently in effect.
- Notify you if there is a breach of your unsecured PHI.
- Train our workforce members on our privacy practices.
Business Associates Agreements (BAA):
PNW Virtual Health works with various third-party individuals and entities (known as “Business Associates”) who perform services on our behalf that involve the use or disclosure of PHI. Examples include billing companies, IT service providers, and cloud storage vendors. Before we allow a Business Associate to access your PHI, we enter into a legally required contract called a Business Associate Agreement (BAA). The BAA obligates our Business Associates to protect your PHI with the same level of care and security as required by HIPAA and this Notice, and to limit their use and disclosure of your PHI to only what is necessary to perform the services they provide to us. Our Business Associates are also required to ensure that any of their subcontractors who handle PHI adhere to these same privacy and security obligations.
Your Rights Regarding Your PHI:
You have the following rights regarding your PHI:
- Right to Access: You have the right to inspect and obtain a copy of your PHI that we maintain in a designated record set, typically within 30 days of your request.
- Right to Amend: If you believe that your PHI is incorrect or incomplete, you have the right to request that we amend it. We may deny your request under certain circumstances, but we will provide you with a written explanation of our decision.
- Right to an Accounting of Disclosures: You have the right to request an accounting of certain disclosures of your PHI made by us in the past six years, excluding disclosures for treatment, payment, healthcare operations, and those made with your authorization.
- Right to Request Restrictions: You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the PHI we use or disclose for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations. We are not required to agree to all requests, but if we do, we will adhere to that restriction. We must agree to a restriction on disclosures to a health plan if the disclosure is for payment or healthcare operations and you have paid for the service out-of-pocket in full.
- Right to Request Confidential Communications: You have the right to request that we communicate with you about health matters in a certain way or at a certain location. For example, you can ask that we only contact you at work or by mail. We will accommodate all reasonable requests.
- Right to a Paper Copy of This Notice: You have the right to receive a paper copy of this Notice at any time, even if you have agreed to receive it electronically.
Changes to This Notice:
We reserve the right to change the terms of this Notice at any time. The new Notice will apply to all PHI that we maintain. If we make material changes, we will post the revised Notice on our website and make paper copies available upon request. The effective date will be clearly noted on the Notice.
Complaints:
If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with PNW Virtual Health or with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.
Contact Information:
If you have any questions about this Notice or wish to exercise any of your rights, please contact our Privacy Officer:
PNW Virtual Health Privacy Officer
Matt Dolge
pnwvirtualhealth.com
mdolge@pnwvirtualhealth.com