Notice of Privacy Practices for
Health & Hope Institute, LLC

(HIPAA Notice)

 Effective Date: November 01, 2004

THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.

Your Health Information Rights

Although your health record is the physical property of the healthcare organization that compiled it, the information belongs to you. You have the right to:

• Request a restriction on certain uses and disclosures of your information obtain a paper copy of the notice of information practices upon request inspect and obtain a copy of your health record

• Amend your health record

• Obtain an accounting of disclosures of your health information

• Request communications of your health information by alternative means or at alternative locations

• Revoke your authorization to use or disclose health information except to the extent that action has already been taken.

Our Responsibilities

This organization is required to:

• Maintain the privacy of your health information

• Provide you with a notice as to our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to information we collect and maintain about you

• Abide by the terms of this notice notify you if we are unable to agree to a requested restriction

• Accommodate reasonable requests you may have to communicate health information by alternative means or at alternative locations. 

We reserve the right to change our practices and to make the new provisions effective for all protected health information we maintain. Should our information practices change, we will mail a revised notice to the address you've supplied us.

We will not use or disclose your health information without your authorization, except as described in this notice. 

Examples of Disclosures for Treatment, Payment and Health Operations:

We will use your health information for treatment purposes.

For example: Information obtained by an, acupuncturist, massage therapist, or other member of your healthcare team will be recorded in your record and used to determine the course of treatment that should work best for you. The acupuncturist will document in your record his or her expectations of the members of your healthcare team. Members of your healthcare team will then record the actions they took and their observations. In that way, the acupuncturist will know how you are responding to treatment.

We will also provide a subsequent healthcare provider with copies of various reports that should assist him or her in treating you.

We will use your health information for payment purposes.  For example: A bill may be sent to you or a third-party payer such as an insurance company, the Medicare program or any other organization, person or program that may be responsible for paying for services. The information on or accompanying the bill may include information that identifies you, as well as your diagnosis, procedures, and supplies used.

We will use your health information for regular health operations.  For example: Health care providers within the organization, the risk or quality improvement manager, or members of the quality improvement team may use information in your health record to assess the care and outcomes In your case and others like it. This Information will then be used in an effort to continually improve the quality and effectiveness of the healthcare and service we provide.

Business associates: There are some services provided in our organization through contracts with business associates. An example is insurance billing done through a separate billing company who is an independent contractor. There may be additional independent contractors. When these services are contracted, we may disclose your health information to our business associate so that they can perform the job we've asked them to do and bill you or your third-party payer for services rendered. To protect your health information, however, we require the business associate to appropriately safeguard your information.

Notification: We may use or disclose information to notify or assist in notifying a family member, personal representative, or another person responsible for your care, your location, and general condition.

Communication with family: Health professionals, using their best judgment, may disclose to a family member, other relative, close personal friend or any other person you identify, health information relevant to that person's involvement in your care or payment related to your care.

Workers' compensation: We may disclose health information to the extent authorized by and to the extent necessary to comply with laws relating to workers compensation or other similar programs established by law.

Research: We may disclose information to researchers when their research has been approved by an institutional review board that has reviewed the research proposal and established protocols to ensure the privacy of your health information.

Public health: As required by law, we may disclose your health information to public health or legal authorities charged with preventing or controlling disease, injury, or disability.

Marketing: We may contact you to provide appointment reminders or information about treatment alternatives or other health-related benefits and services that may be of interest to you or otherwise provide information about additional services or health care products you may find useful.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA): We may disclose to the FDA health information relative to adverse events with respect to food, supplements, product and product defects, or post marketing surveillance to enable product recalls, repairs, or replacement.

Organ procurement organizations: Consistent with applicable law, we may disclose health information to organ procurement organizations or other entities engaged in the procurement, banking, or transplantation of organs for the purpose of tissue donation and transplant.

Funeral directors: We may disclose health information to funeral directors consistent with applicable law to carry out their duties.

Legal Matters: In the event of' a claim, litigation or other legal proceeding or contemplated legal matter, we may disclose health information to our attorneys and individuals or organizations working for them.

Law enforcement: We may disclose health information for law enforcement purposes as required by law or in response to a valid subpoena.

Federal law makes provision for your health information to be released to an appropriate health oversight agency, public health authority or attorney, provided that a work force member or business associate believes in good faith that we have engaged in unlawful conduct or have otherwise violated professional or clinical standards and are potentially endangering one or more patients, workers or the public.

For More Information or to Report a Problem

If have questions and would like additional information, you may contact Guiderman Posso, the HIPAA Privacy Official, for Health & Hope Institute, LLC. at 101 Lake Hayes Rd. Suite 105. Oviedo, FL 32765 or at 407-366-0303.

If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you can file a complaint with the HIPAA Privacy Official for Health & Hope Institute, LLC  or with the secretary of Health and Human Services.

There will be no retaliation for filing a complaint. 

Other Uses of Protected Health Information

Other uses and disclosures of protected health information not covered by this notice or the laws that apply to us will be made only with your written permission. If you provide us permission to use or disclose medical information about you, you may revoke that permission, in writing, at any time. If you revoke your permission, we will no longer use or disclose protected health information about you for the reasons covered by your written authorization. You understand that we are unable to take back any disclosures we have already made with your permission, and that we are required to retain our records of the care that we provided to you.