Your Rights

When it comes to your health information, you have certain rights.
This section explains your rights and some of our responsibilities to help you.

• You can ask to see or get an electronic or paper copy of your medical record and other health information we have about you. Ask us how to do this.
• We will provide a copy or a summary of your health information, usually within 30 days of your request. We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee.

• You can ask us to correct health information about you that you think is incorrect or incomplete. Ask us how to do this.
• We may say “no” to your request, but we’ll tell you why in writing within 60 days.

• You can ask us to contact you in a specific way (for example, home or office phone) or to send mail to a different address.
• We will say “yes” to all reasonable requests.

• You can ask us not to use or share certain health information for treatment, payment, or our operations.
• We are not required to agree to your request, and we may say “no” if it would affect your care.
• If you pay for a service or health care item out-of-pocket in full, you can ask us not to share that information for the purpose of payment or our operations with your health insurer.
• We will say “yes” unless a law requires us to share that information.

• You can ask for a list (accounting) of the times we’ve shared your health information for six years prior to the date you ask, who we shared it with, and why.
• We will include all the disclosures except for those about treatment, payment, and health care operations, and certain other disclosures (such as any you asked us to make). We’ll provide one accounting a year for free but will charge a reasonable, cost-based fee if you ask for another one within 12 months.

• You can ask for a paper copy of this notice at any time, even if you have agreed to receive the notice electronically. We will provide you with a paper copy promptly.

• If you have given someone medical power of attorney or if someone is your legal guardian, that person can exercise your rights and make choices about your health information.
• We will make sure the person has this authority and can act for you before we take any action.

• You can complain if you feel we have violated your rights by contacting us using the information on the back page.
• You can file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights by sending a letter to 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201, calling 1-877-696-6775, or visiting hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints
• We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

Your Choices

For certain health information, you can tell us your choices about what we share. If you have a clear preference for how we share your information in the situations described below, talk to us. Tell us what you want us to do, and we will follow your instructions.

• Share information with your family, close friends, or others involved in your care
• Share information in a disaster relief situation
• Include your information in a hospital directory

If you are not able to tell us your preference, for example if you are unconscious, we may go ahead and share your information if we believe it is in your best interest. We may also share your information when needed to lessen a serious and imminent threat to
health or safety.

• Marketing purposes
• Sale of your information
• Most sharing of psychotherapy notes

• You can ask us to contact you in a specific way (for example, home or office phone) or to send mail to a different address.
• We will say “yes” to all reasonable requests.

• We may contact you for fundraising efforts, but you can tell us not to contact you again.

Our Uses and Disclosures

How do we typically use or share your health information? We typically use or share your health information in the following ways.

• We can use your health information and share it with other professionals
who are treating you.

Example: A doctor treating you for an injury asks another doctor about your overall health condition.

• We can use and share your health information to run our practice, improve your care, and contact you when necessary.

Example: We use health information about you to manage your treatment
and services.

• We can use and share your health information to bill and get payment from health plans or other entities.

Your Rights

How else can we use or share your health information?

We are allowed or required to share your information in other ways – usually in ways that contribute to the public good, such as public health and research. We have to meet many conditions in the law before we can share your information for these purposes. For more information see: hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/consumers/index.html

• We can share health information about you for
certain situations such as:
• Preventing disease
• Helping with product recalls
• Reporting adverse reactions to medications
• Reporting suspected abuse, neglect, or domestic violence
• Preventing or reducing a serious threat to anyone’s health or safety

• We can use or share your information for health research.

• We will share information about you if state or federal laws require it, including with the Department of Health and Human Services if it wants to see that we’re complying with federal privacy law.

• We can share health information about you with organ

procurement organizations.

• We can share health information with a coroner, medical examiner, or funeral director when an individual dies.

• We can use or share health information about you:
• For workers’ compensation claims
• For law enforcement purposes or with a law enforcement official
• With health oversight agencies for activities authorized by law
• For special government functions such as military, national security, and presidential protective services

• We can share health information about you in response to a court or administrative order, or in response to a subpoena.

Our Responsibilities

• We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your protected health information.
• We will let you know promptly if a breach occurs that may have compromised the privacy or security of your information.
• We must follow the duties and privacy practices described in this notice and give you a copy of it.
• We will not use or share your information other than as described here unless you tell us we can in writing. If you tell us we can, you may change your mind at any time. Let us know in writing if you change your mind. For more information see: hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/consumers/noticepp.html

Changes to the Terms of This Notice We can change the terms of this notice, and the changes will apply to all information we have about you. The new notice will be available upon request, in our office, and on our web site. Our Responsibilities This Notice of Privacy Practices applies to the following organizations.
Effective 7/01/2021

Records Retention

Personnel records and disclosures of PHI will be maintained for a period of six years as required by federal law, unless a state law requires a longer retention period. Records that have been maintained for the maximum interval will be destroyed in a manner to ensure that such data are not compromised in the future in accordance with the company record destruction policy and procedures. 

Individuals can contact for information about Right Path Recovery’s privacy policies.

The company has designated Mary J. as the HIPAA compliance officer (HCO) and any questions or issues regarding PHI should be presented to the HCO for resolution.

The HCO can be contacted by phone at (614) 907-5434 or email at [email protected]

Illness or another mental condition that constitute incapacity under the Privacy Rule. When a patient does not have the capacity to agree or object to a health care provider sharing information with a family member.  

Section 164.510(b)(3) of the HIPAA Privacy Rule permits a health care provider, when a patient is not present or is unable to agree or object to a disclosure due to incapacity or emergency circumstances, to determine whether disclosing a patient’s information to the patient’s family, friends, or other persons involved in the patient’s care or payment for care, is in the best interests of the patient. When a provider determines that such a disclosure is in the patient’s best interests, the provider is permitted to disclose only the PHI that is directly relevant to the person’s involvement in the patient’s care or payment for care. This permission clearly applies where a patient is unconscious. There are additional situations in which a health care provider believes, based on professional judgment, that the patient does not have the capacity to agree or object to the sharing of personal health information at a particular time and that sharing the

information is in the best interests of the patient at that time. These may include circumstances in which a patient is suffering from temporary psychosis or is under the influence of drugs or alcohol. If the provider believes the patient cannot meaningfully agree or object to the sharing of the patient’s information with family, friends, or other persons involved in their care due to her current mental state, the provider is allowed to discuss the patient’s condition or treatment with a family member, if the provider believes it would be in the patient’s best interests. The Privacy Rule permits, but does not require, providers to disclose information in these situations.

When the provider believes that a patient might hurt themself or someone else, is it the duty of the provider to notify the family or law enforcement authorities.

A health care provider’s “duty to warn” generally is derived from and defined by standards of ethical conduct and State laws and court decisions. HIPAA permits a covered health care provider to notify a patient’s family members of a serious and imminent threat to the health or safety of the patient or others if those family members are in a position to lessen or avert the threat. Thus, to the extent that a provider determines that there is a serious and imminent threat of a patient physically harming self or others, HIPAA permits the provider to warn the appropriate person(s) of the threat, consistent with his or her professional ethical obligations and State law requirements.