NOTICE OF TREATMENT HOMES, INC.PRIVACY PRACTICES

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. USE AND DISCLOSURE OF HEALTH INFORMATION

Treatment Homes, Inc. may use your health information for purposes of providing you treatment, obtaining payment for your care and conducting health care operations.  Your health information may be used or disclosed only after the Treatment Homes, Inc. has obtained your written consent.  Treatment Homes, Inc. has established a policy to guard against unnecessary disclosure of your health information.

THE FOLLOWING IS A SUMMARY OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH AND PURPOSES FOR WHICH YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AFTER YOU HAVE PROVIDED YOUR WRITTEN CONSENT:

To Provide Treatment.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may use your health information to coordinate care within Treatment Homes, Inc. and with others involved in your care, such as your attending physician, members of the Treatment Homes, Inc.’ interdisciplinary team and other health care professionals who have agreed to assist in coordinating care.  For example, physicians involved in your care will need information about your symptoms in order to prescribe appropriate medications.  Treatment Homes, Inc. also may disclose your health care information to individuals outside of Treatment Homes, Inc. involved in your care including psychiatrist, therapists, pharmacists, other health care professionals that Hospice uses in order to coordinate your care.

To Obtain Payment.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may include your health information in invoices to collect payment from third parties for the care you may receive.  For example, we may be required by your health insurer to provide information regarding your health care status so that the insurer will reimburse Treatment Homes, Inc.  We also may need to obtain prior approval from your insurer and may need to explain to the insurer your need for the services that will be provided to you.

To Conduct Health Care Operations.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may use and disclose health care information for its own operations in order to provide quality care to all of our clients.  Health care operations includes such activities as: 

• Quality assessment and improvement activities. 
• Activities designed to improve health or reduce health care costs.
• Protocol development, case management and care coordination.
• Contacting health care providers and clients with information about treatment alternatives and other related functions that do not include treatment.
• Professional review and performance evaluation.
• Training programs including those in which students, trainees or practitioners in health care learn under supervision.
• Training of non-health care professionals.
• Accreditation, certification, licensing or credentialing activities.
• Review and auditing, including compliance reviews, medical reviews, legal services and compliance programs.
• Business planning and development including cost management and planning related analyses and formulary development.
• Business management and general administrative activities.

For example Treatment Homes, Inc. may use your health information to evaluate its staff performance, combine your health information with other clients in evaluating how to more effectively serve all clients, disclose your health information to Treatment Homes, Inc. staff and contracted personnel for training purposes, use your health information to contact you as a reminder regarding a visit to you, or contact you or your family as part of community information mailings (unless you tell us you do not want to be contacted).

Federal privacy rules allow Treatment Homes, Inc. to use or disclose your health information without your consent or authorization for a number of reasons. 

When Legally Required.  Treatment Homes, Inc. will disclose your health information when it is required to do so by any Federal, State or local law.

When There Are Risks to Public Health.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may disclose your health information for public activities and purposes in order to:

• Prevent or control disease, injury or disability, report disease, injury, vital events such as birth or death and the conduct of public health surveillance, investigations and interventions.
• To report adverse events, product defects, to track products or enable product recalls, repairs and replacements and to conduct post-marketing surveillance and compliance with requirements of the Food and Drug Administration.
• To notify a person who has been exposed to a communicable disease or who may be at risk of contracting or spreading a disease.
• To an employer about an individual who is a member of the workforce as legally required.

To Report Abuse, Neglect Or Domestic Violence.  Treatment Homes, Inc. must notify government authorities if we believe a client is the victim of abuse, neglect or domestic violence.  Treatment Homes, Inc. will make this disclosure only when specifically required or authorized by law or when the client agrees to the disclosure.

To Conduct Health Oversight Activities.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may disclose your health information to a health oversight agency for activities including audits, civil administrative or criminal investigations, inspections, licensure or disciplinary action.  Treatment Homes, Inc., however, may not disclose your health information if you are the subject of an investigation and your health information is not directly related to your receipt of health care or public benefits.

In Connection With Judicial And Administrative Proceedings.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may disclose your health information in the course of any judicial or administrative proceeding in response to an order of a court or administrative tribunal as expressly authorized by such order or in response to a subpoena, discovery request or other lawful process.

For Law Enforcement Purposes.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may disclose your health information to a law enforcement official for law enforcement purposes as follows:

• As required by law for reporting of certain types of wounds or other physical injuries pursuant to the court order, warrant, subpoena or summons or similar process.
• For the purpose of identifying or locating a suspect, fugitive, material witness or missing person.
• Under certain limited circumstances, when you are the victim of a crime.
• In an emergency in order to report a crime.

For Research Purposes.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may, under very select circumstances, use your health information for research.  Before Treatment Homes, Inc. discloses any of your health information for such research purposes, the project will be subject to an extensive approval process.  Treatment Homes, Inc. will ask your permission if any researcher will be granted access to your individually identifiable health information.

In the Event of A Serious Threat To Health Or Safety.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may, consistent with applicable law and ethical standards of conduct, disclose your health information if Treatment Homes, Inc., in good faith, believes that such disclosure is necessary to prevent or lessen a serious and imminent threat to your health or safety or to the health and safety of the public.

For Worker's Compensation.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may release your health information for worker's compensation or similar programs.

AUTHORIZATION TO USE OR DISCLOSE HEALTH INFORMATION

Other than is stated above, Treatment Homes, Inc. will not disclose your health information other than with your written authorization.  If you or your representative authorizes Treatment Homes, Inc. to use or disclose your health information, you may revoke that authorization in writing at any time. 

YOUR RIGHTS WITH RESPECT TO YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION

You have the following rights regarding your health information:

Right to request restrictions.  You may request restrictions on certain uses and disclosures of  your health information.  You have the right to request a limit on Treatment Homes, Inc.’ disclosure of your health information to someone who is involved in your care or the payment of your care.  However, Treatment Homes, Inc. is not required to agree to your request.  If you wish to make a request for restrictions, please contact the Privacy Officer at 372-5039.

Right to receive confidential communications.  You have the right to request that Treatment Homes, Inc. communicate with you in a certain way.  For example, you may ask that the Treatment Homes, Inc. only conduct communications pertaining to your health information with you privately with no other family members present.  Treatment Homes, Inc. will not request that you provide any reasons for your request and will attempt to honor your reasonable requests for confidential communications.

Right to inspect and copy your health information.  You have the right to inspect and copy your health information, including billing records.  A request to inspect and copy records containing your health information may be made to the Privacy Officer at 372-5039.  If you request a copy of your health information, Treatment Homes, Inc. may charge a reasonable fee for copying and assembling costs associated with your request.

Right to amend health care information.  If you or your representative believes that your health information records are incorrect or incomplete, you may request that Treatment Homes, Inc. amend the records.  That request may be made as long as the information is maintained by Treatment Homes, Inc.  A request for an amendment of records must be made in writing to the Privacy Officer.  Treatment Homes, Inc. may deny the request if it is not in writing or does not include a reason for the amendment.  The request also may be denied if your health information records were not created by Treatment Homes, Inc., if the records you are requesting are not part of Treatment Homes, Inc.’ records, if the health information you wish to amend is not part of the health information you or your representative are permitted to inspect and copy, or if, in the opinion of Treatment Homes, Inc., the records containing your health information are accurate and complete.

Right to an accounting.  You or your representative have the right to request an accounting of disclosures of your health information made by Treatment Homes, Inc., Inc. for any reason other than for treatment, payment or health operations.  The request for an accounting must be made in writing to the Privacy Officer.  The request should specify the time period for the accounting.  Accounting requests may not be made for periods of time in excess of six years.  Treatment Homes, Inc. would provide the first accounting you request during any 12-month period without charge.  Subsequent accounting requests may be subject to a reasonable cost-based fee.

DUTIES of  REATMENT HOMES, INC.

Treatment Homes, Inc. is required by law to maintain the privacy of your health information and to provide to you and your representative this Notice of its duties and privacy practices.  Treatment Homes, Inc. is required to abide by terms of this Notice as may be amended from time to time.  Treatment Homes, Inc. reserves the right to change the terms of its Notice and to make the new Notice provisions effective for all health information that it maintains.  If Treatment Homes, Inc. changes its Notice, we will provide a copy of the revised Notice to you or your appointed representative.