|
HealthPartners Clinics and Regions HospitalNotice of Privacy Practices
Effective May 1, 2009
This notice of privacy practices describes how HealthPartners and our related organizations manage and protect your personal information. 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.
This notice is divided into three sections:
- A summary overview of our privacy practices and your privacy rights;
- A more detailed description of those practices and rights for our healthplan members; and
- A summary of how our patients in our healthcare facilities can get information about those practices and rights.
Section 1 - Summary Notice
We are required by law to maintain the privacy of your personal information and abide by the terms of this notice. We reserve the right to change the terms of this notice and to make the new notice provisions effective for all personal information that we maintain. If we materially change this notice and you are a health plan member, you will receive a new notice within 60 days of the change. If you are a patient, a current notice will be prominently displayed at our care delivery sites and given to you if you ask. Our privacy notice is also available at healthpartners.com, healthpartnerscmc.com and regionshospital.com.
We use and disclose your personal information to help with your treatment, payment for your treatment and our health care operations, and in other ways permitted or required by law. When the law requires us to get your permission before we release your information to another organization, we do so as described in the more detailed portions of this notice.
You have the right to: access and copy your personal information; ask for changes to your information; ask us to restrict the use or disclosure of your information; ask us to communicate with you in other ways; and get a list of certain disclosures of your personal information. You also have the right to receive a paper copy of this notice, and to file a complaint with us or with the government if you believe that we have violated your privacy rights. These rights, and how you may exercise them, are described in the more detailed portions of this notice.
Section 2
If you are a self-insured member (that is, if your employer is self-insured), then section 2 does not apply to you. Please check with your employer for more information about your health plan's privacy practices.
Description of Health Plan Privacy Practices
This portion of our privacy notice describes how we, as a health plan, manage and protect patients’ personal information. It also describes how you, as a patient, may exercise your rights with regard to your personal information.
What is “Personal Information?”
“Personal information” is information about you that relates to your past, present, or future physical or mental health, payment for health care services, or the provision of health care services. Personal information includes information we receive from you on applications and other forms, including demographic information such as your name, address and phone number as well as your social security number, age, date of birth, dependants and health histrory. It also includes information that results from your doing business with us or our affiliates, such as enrollment, claims payment, prior approvals, referrals and coverage determinations.
How Does HealthPartners Protect My Personal Information?
We permit access to your personal information by our staff and others only to the extent they need that information to administer your health plan, facilitate treatment, make payment or provide other services to you or to comply with legal
or accreditation requirements. We maintain physical, electronic and administrative safeguards designed to protect your personal information and prevent unauthorized access.
How Does HealthPartners Use My Personal Information?
We use your personal information only to the extent reasonably necessary to conduct or support treatment, payment or other health care operations, or as otherwise authorized by you or by law. Examples of how we use your personal information include:
- To support treatment purposes such as care coordination;
- To pay claims for health care services provided to you;
- For health care operations such as enrolling you and your dependants in a health plan;
- To support quality improvement initiatives in order to provide safe and equitable health care.
When Does HealthPartners Disclose My Personal Information?
We share your personal information - with our affiliates or with nonaffiliated parties – only to the extent reasonably necessary to conduct treatment, payment or health care operations, as required or permitted by law, or as otherwise authorized by you. We never sell or rent your personal infromation to anyone. Following are some examples of when and why HealthPartners discloses your personal information:
Sharing with Affiliates
As your health plan, we may disclose your personal information to our affiliates (also know as related organizations) that help us administer and manage our health plans. When we share you information with our affiliates it is because we have an arrangement with them to conduct certain treatment, payment or health care operations on our behalf, such as:
- To support treatment;
- To handle certain payment activities such as billing and claims payment.
Sharing witn Nonaffiliates Parties
As your health plan we may share your personal information with nonaffiliated (non-related) third parties with whom we contract to administer or provide selected functions on behalf of our health plans. These contracts include assurances that safeguard your personal information. Some of the functions that nonaffiliated third parties perform on our behalf include care management services and certain payment activities.
Additionaly. as a health plan providing fully insured benefits to a group health plan, or helping administer your benefits, we may, if requested, disclose limited personal information to the sponsor of your group health plan as long as certain privacy requirements are met.
When Does HealthPartners Use or Disclose My Personal Information Based on Authorization?
There may be times when we may use or disclose your personal information in a way that is not considered treatment, payment or health care operations, or is not required by law. For example, if someone contacts HealthPartners on your behalf, we may need you to sign a release of information before we can provide information to them. In some situations, your verbal authorization will allow us to talk with others on your behalf about a specific event or concern. For long-term arrangements, a written authorization will be required. If you do not wish to give your authorization for the proposed activity, you may do so with no fear of reprisal. If you do give us this authorization, then later wish to revoke it, you may do so in writing at any time, except if we have already relied upon it.
HealthPartners’ Other Uses and Disclosures of Personal Information.
Uses and Disclosures Required or Permitted by Law.
Because health plans are regulated by law and our activities often relate to public health, we may be required or permitted to disclose your personal information without obtaining your authorization. Examples of these kinds of uses and disclosures include:
- When required by law;
- To public health authorities, for purposes such as tracking and controlling certain diseases, injuries and other health
conditions;
- To assist in disaster recovery efforts;
- To report victims of abuse or neglect, or other crimes;
- To health and health plan oversight agencies, such as the Minnesota Department of Health;
- In response to judicial or administrative bodies under certain circumstances, such as in response to court orders;
- To law enforcement, under certain circumstances, such as in response to search warrants or court orders;
- For research purposes, but only if the research study follows certain procedures to protect your privacy and obtains
your consent if required by State law;
- To medical examiners or coroners;
- To military authorities or other governmental agencies’ personnel under
certain circumstances, to avert serious threat to public safety or to a specific individual, or to protect national security;
- For workers’ compensation purposes.
Uses and Disclosures about Plan Benefits or Services
We may use or disclose your personal information to tell you about the plan benefits, treatment alternatives, or health-related products and service; plan networks; value-added plan-related products and services; appointment reminders; and reminders to obtain certain health services.
Uses and Disclosures for Health Research
The HealthPartners Research Foundation is a nonprofit organization within HealthPartners that conducts research to improve the health of our members, patients and the community. We may use your information to conduct health research in a numbetr of ways, sometimes working with nonaffiliated research organizations. For more information on the HealthPartners Research Foundation, visit the Research Foundation website at www.hprf.org.
Uses and Disclosures for Market Research
HealthPartners and its affiliates sometimes conduct market research and surveys to help us design and improve our programs, communications and services to better meet our members' needs. While we never give your personal inmformation to anyone for their own marketing purposes, on occasion we contaract with nonaffiliated parties to perform research activities on our behalf.
You Have Opt-Out Choices Regarding Information Disclosure
If you prefer that we not disclose personal information about you, you may opt out of two types of disclosures; market research conducted by nonaffiliated parties and health research conducted by nonaffiliated parties. Even if you don't choose to opt out of these disclosures, we will never sell or rent your personal information to anyone.
How to Opt Out of Information Disclosure
Although we strongly believe that using and sharing personal information for the limited purpose of market research or health research leads to better health care and health care coverage for all, we want you to be comfortable
with how we share your personal information. Therefore, of you do not want us to share your personal information with nonaffiliated parties for the purpose of market research or health research, please complete and send us your opt-out form. The form can be found at HealthPartners.com or by calling Member Services at 952-883-5000, toll-free 800-883-2177 or (TTY)952-883-5127. Your opt-out choices will be effective shortly after we receive your opt-out form. If you do not want to be included in the Minnesota Health Information Exchange (MNHEI) record locator that HealthPartners participates in, please call the MNHIE service desk at 1-888-329-5270 or HealthPartners Member Services at 952-883-5000, toll-free 800-883-2177, or 952-883-5127 (TTY).
What Are My Privacy Rights, and How Do I Exercise Them?
State and federal laws give patients several rights that relate to the privacy of their personal information. Each of these rights is described below. If you would like more information on these rights, please call our Member Services Department or review a more detailed explanation at www.healthpartners.com if you would like more information on how you can assert your rights through the health plan, please contact Member Services at 952-883-5000, toll free at 800-883-2177 or 952-883-5127 (TTY) or by writing to HealthPartners Member Services, P.O. Box 1309, Minneapolis, MN 55440-1309.
Right to Review and Copy your Personal Information.
We maintain a designated record set of our patients’ claims and enrollment information and other information that helps us administer your health plan. You have a right to inspect and obtain a copy of your personal information that we maintain in our designated record set.
Right to Request an Amendment of Your Personal Information.
You have the right to request an amendment of your personal information in your designated record set. We are required to agree to your request.
Right to Request a Restriction of Your Personal Information.
You have the right to ask us not to use or disclose your personal information for the purposes described in this notice. You may also ask that we not disclose your personal information to family members or friends who may be involved in your care or for notification purposes. We are required to agree to your request.
Right to Request Confidential Communications.
You have the right to ask us to communicate with you about confidential matters by alternative means or at alternative locations.
Right to Receive an Accounting of Disclosures.
Subject to certain exceptions, you have the right to receive from us an accounting, or listing, of instances when we released your personal information to nonaffiliated third parties.
Right to Obtain a Copy of this Notice.
You can request an additional copy of this notice by contacting Member Services. This notice is also available on our website at healthpartners.com.
Right to Complain about Our Privacy Practices.
If you believe we have violated your privacy rights, you may complain to us directly (see Contact Information section below) or to the United States Department of Health and Human Services. If you wish to file a complaint with the Department of Health and Human Services, please write to the Office for Civil Rights U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 233 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 240, Chicago, Ill. 60601. You may file a complaint with either us or the United States Department of Health and Human Services without fear of reprisal.
Whom should I call if I have other questions?
We encourage you to contact us if you have any questions about this Notice of Privacy Practices or your privacy rights.
Call Member Services at 952-883-5000, toll free at 800-883-2177 or 952-883-5127 (TTY)
You may also contact our Privacy Officer at 1-866-444-3493.
Section 3
Description of Care Delivery Privacy Practices
A more detailed description of these practices and rights, including examples, for HealthPartners patients and patients of other facilities in our care system is provided at our hospital and clinic sites, or available upon request.
This is mandated information is for members of HealthPartners family of health plans. The HealthPartners family of health plans are underwritten and administered by HealthPartners, Inc., Group Health, Inc., HealthPartners Insurance Company or HealthPartners Administrators, Inc. Fully insured Wisconsin plans are underwritten and administered by HealthPartners Insurance Company.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
