PRIVACY POLICY

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. If you have any questions about this Notice please contact the Privacy Officer, the Practice Manager at 803-985-3939. 

We are committed to protect the privacy of your personal health information (PHI). This Notice of Privacy Practices (Notice) describes how we may use within our practice or network and disclose (share outside of our practice or network) your PHI to carry out treatment, payment or health care operations. We may also share your information for other purposes that are permitted or required by law. 

This Notice also describes your rights to access and control your PHI. We are required by law to maintain the privacy of your PHI. We will follow the terms outlined in this Notice. We may change our Notice, at any time. Any changes will apply to all PHI. 

Upon your request, we will provide you with any revised Notice by: 

• Posting the new Notice in our office. 
• If requested, making copies of the new Notice available in our office or by mail. 
• Posting the revised Notice on our website: www.metrolinamedicalassociates.com 

Uses and Disclosures of Protected Health Information 

We may use or disclose (share) your PHI to provide health care treatment for you. Your PHI may be used and disclosed by your physician, our office staff and others outside of our office that are involved in your care and treatment for the purpose of providing health care services to you. 

EXAMPLE: Your PHI may be provided to a physician to whom you have been referred for evaluation to ensure that the physician has the necessary information to diagnose or treat you. 

We may also share your PHI from time-to-time to another physician or health care provider (e.g., a specialist or laboratory) who, at the request of your physician, becomes involved in your care by providing assistance with your health care diagnosis or treatment to your physician. We may also share your PHI with people outside of our practice that may provide medical care for you such as home health agencies. We may use and disclose your PHI to obtain payment for services. We may provide your PHI to others in order to bill or collect payment for services. There may be services for which we share information with your health plan to determine if the service will be paid for. 

PHI may be shared with the following: 

• Billing companies 
• Insurance companies, health plans 
• Government agencies in order to assist with qualification of benefits 
• Collection agencies 

EXAMPLE: You are seen at our practice for a procedure. We will need to provide a listing of services such as x-rays to your insurance company so that we can get paid for the procedure. 

We may at times contact your health care plan to receive approval PRIOR to performing certain procedures to ensure the services will be paid for. This will require sharing of your PHI. We may use or disclose, as needed, your PHI in order to support the business activities of this practice which are called health care operations. 

EXAMPLES: 

• Training students, other health care providers,or ancillary staff such as billing personnel to help them learn or improve their skills. 
• Quality improvement processes which look at delivery of health care and for improvement in processes which will provide safer, more effective care for you. 
• Use of information to assist in resolving problems or complaints within the practice. 

We may use and disclosure your PHI in other situations without your permission: 

• If required by law: The use or disclosure will be made in compliance with the law and will be limited to the relevant requirements of the law. 
  • For example, we may be required to report gunshot wounds or suspected abuse or neglect. 
• Public health activities: The disclosure will be made for the purpose of controlling disease, injury or disability and only to public health authorities permitted by law to collect or receive information. We may also notify individuals who may have been exposed to a disease or may be at risk of contracting or spreading a disease or condition. 
• Health oversight agencies: We may disclose protected health information to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law, such as audits, investigations, and inspections. Oversight agencies seeking this information include government agencies that oversee the health care system, government benefit programs, other government regulatory Program and civil rights laws. 
• Legal proceedings: To assist in any legal proceeding or in response to a court order,in certain conditions in response to a subpoena, or other lawful process. 
• Police or other law enforcement purposes: The release of PHI will meet all applicable legal requirements for release. 
• Coroners. funeraldirectors:We may disclose protected health information to a coroner or medical examiner for identification purposes, determining cause of death or for the coroner or medical examiner to perform other duties authorized by law. 
• Medical research: We may disclose your protected health 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 protected health information. 
• Special government purposes: Information may be shared for national security purposes, or if you are a member of the military, to the military under limited circumstances. 
• Correctionalinstitutions:Information may be shared if you are an inmate or under custody of law which is necessary for your health or the health and safety of other individuals. 
• Workers’ Compensation:Your protected health information may be disclosed by us as authorized to comply with workers’ compensation laws and other similar legally-established programs.