Privacy Practices - New Horizon Counseling Center

PRIVACY PRACTICES AND LEGAL NOTICE

Privacy practices DESCRIBE HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW THIS NOTICE CAREFULLY.

Your health record contains personal information about you and your health. This information about you that may identify you and that relates to your past, present or future physical or mental health or condition and related health care services is referred to as Protected Health Information (“PHI”). This Notice of Privacy Practices describes how we may use and disclose your PHI in accordance with applicable law, the New York State Office of Mental Health and New Horizon Counseling Center Policy and Procedures. It also describes your rights regarding how you may gain access to and control your PHI.

We are required by law to maintain the privacy of PHI and to provide you with notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to PHI. We are required to abide by the terms of this Notice of Privacy Practices. We reserve the right to change the terms of our Notice of Privacy Practices at any time. Any new Notice of Privacy Practices will be effective for all PHI that we maintain at that time. We will provide you with a copy of the revised Notice of Privacy Practices by prominently posting copies in treatment areas or by providing a copy to you upon request.

HOW WE MAY USE AND DISCLOSE HEALTH INFORMATION ABOUT YOU

For Treatment. Your PHI may be used and disclosed by those who are involved in your care for the purpose of providing, coordinating, or managing your health care treatment and related services. This includes consultation with clinical supervisors or other treatment team members. We may disclose PHI to any other consultant only with your authorization.
For Payment. We may use and disclose PHI so that we can receive payment for the treatment services provided to you. This will only be done with your authorization. Examples of payment-related activities are: making a determination of eligibility or coverage for insurance benefits, processing claims with your insurance company, reviewing services provided to you to determine medical necessity, or undertaking utilization review activities. If it becomes necessary to use collection processes due to lack of payment for services, we will only disclose the minimum amount of PHI necessary for purposes of collection.

For Health Care Operations. We may use or disclose, as needed, your PHI in order to support our business activities including, but not limited to, quality assessment activities, employee review activities, licensing, and conducting or arranging for other business activities. For example, we may share your PHI with third parties that perform various business activities (e.g., billing or typing services) provided we have a written contract with the business that requires it to safeguard the privacy of your PHI. For training or teaching purposes PHI will be disclosed only with your authorization. Your PHI may be used, as necessary, to remind you of appointments, and provide information about treatment alternative or other health-related benefits and services.

Required by Law. Under the law, we must make disclosures of your PHI to you upon your request. In addition, we must make disclosures to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services for the purpose of investigating or determining our compliance with the requirements of the Privacy Rule.

Following is a list of categories of uses and disclosures permitted by HIPAA without an authorization.

Abuse and Neglect
Judicial and Administrative Proceedings (including lawsuits and disputes)
Deceased Persons (to provide information to coroner, medical examiner and funeral director)
Emergencies (to avert a serious threat to health or safety)
Family Involvement in Care
Health Oversight
Law Enforcement
National Security and Protection of the President
Public Health
Public Safety (Duty to Warn)

Without Authorization. Applicable law and ethical standards permit us to disclose information about you without your authorization only in a limited number of other situations. The types of uses and disclosures that may be made without your authorization are those that are:

Required by Law, such as the mandatory reporting of child abuse or neglect or mandatory government agency audits or investigations (such as the social work licensing board or the health department)
Required by Court Order
Necessary to prevent or lessen a serious and imminent threat to the health or safety of a person or the public. If information is disclosed to prevent or lessen a serious threat it will be disclosed to a person or persons reasonably able to prevent or lessen the threat, including the target of the threat.

What is NOT covered under this notice?

Confidential HIV related information. Under the New York State law, confidential HIV-related information (information concerning whether or not you have had an HIV-related test, or have HIV infection, HIV-related illness, or AIDS, or which could indicate that a person has been potentially exposed to HIV), cannot be disclosed except to those people you authorize in writing to have it.

Verbal Permission. We may use or disclose your information to family members that are directly involved in your treatment with your verbal permission.
With Authorization. Uses and disclosures not specifically permitted by applicable law will be made only with your written authorization, which may be revoked.

YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING YOUR PHI

You have the following rights regarding PHI we maintain about you. To exercise any of these rights, please submit your request in writing to our Privacy Officer at your clinic/program.

Right of Access to Inspect and Copy. You have the right, which may be restricted only in exceptional circumstances, to inspect and copy PHI that may be used to make decisions about your care. Your right to inspect and copy PHI will be restricted only in those situations where there is compelling evidence that access would cause serious harm to you. We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee for copies.
Right to Amend. If you feel that the PHI we have about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask us to amend the information although we are not required to agree to the amendment.
Right to an Accounting of Disclosures. You have the right to request an accounting of certain of the disclosures that we may of your PHI. We may charge you a reasonable fee if you request more than one accounting in any 12-month period.
Right to Request Restrictions. You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the use or disclosure of your PHI for treatment, payment, or health care operations. We are not required to agree to your request.
Right to Request Confidential Communication. You have the right to request that we communicate with you about mental matters in a certain way or at a certain location.
Right to a Copy of this Notice. You have the right to a copy of this notice.

LEGAL NOTICE

NHCC.US Disclaimer
New Horizon Counseling Center, Inc. (NHCC) cannot and does not warrant the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, correctness or fitness for a particular purpose of the information or views made available through this website or the material contained within. By using NHCC.US, you are agreeing that under no circumstances will NHCC or its affiliates be responsible for: 1. any information contained on or omitted from the NHCC.US website, 2. any person’s reliance on any such information whether or not the information is correct, current or complete, 3. the consequences of any action you or any other person takes or fails to take, whether or not based on information provided by or as a result of the use of the website. NHCC makes no representations or warranties of any kind regarding the content in the NHCC.US website or that of any other website to which the NHCC.US website provides a link. NHCC specifically disclaims any express or implied warranties, including without limitation, warranties of merchantability, of fitness for a particular purpose, or against infringement. NHCC shall in no event be liable for any consequential, indirect or special damages resulting from or caused by the decisions you, the user, or any other person(s) make as a result of viewing and/or applying the use of any content presented by NHCC.US or to any information to which NHCC.US provides a link, or the negligence of NHCC or its agents.

The effective date of this Notice is April 14, 2003