Privacy Practices

THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW YOUR MEDICAL INFORMATION MAY BE USED, SHARED, AND ACCESSED.
PLEASE REVIEW THIS CAREFULLY.

Summary

When you receive care from a Chiro One Wellness Center (“we,” or “us”), we collect “protected health information,” which is individually identifiable health information deserving special treatment under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”), as amended. We may obtain your protected health information from conversations, forms, exams, tests, or from other providers involved in your care. This Notice of Privacy Practices informs you how we may use and disclose your protected health information, as well as your legal rights with respect to such information.

Our Legal Duties

We are required by law to:

  • maintain the privacy of protected health information, as provided by HIPAA;
  • provide this Notice to you of our privacy practices and legal duties regarding your protected health information;
  • notify you following any breach of unsecured protected health information which affects you; and
  • abide by the terms of this Notice until we adopt any new Notice.

How We May Use or Disclose Your Protected Health Information

We may use or share your protected health information for purposes allowed by HIPAA. Any other use requires your written permission. The examples below are not exhaustive.

  1. Treatment. We use your health information to provide care and may share it with other providers involved in your treatment.
  2. Payment. We use and share your information as needed to bill for services, including with insurance companies and payment service providers.
  3. Health Care Operations. We use your information to run and improve our services, including quality checks and administrative tasks.
  4. Legal Requirement and Restrictions on Government Access to Health Information. . We share information when required by law, such as with government agencies or by court order.
  5. Public Health Activities. We report information for public health purposes, like certain diseases or vital statistics.
  6. Reporting of Abuse.  We report suspected abuse or neglect as required by law. We will make this report only in accordance with laws that require or allow such reporting, or with your permission as follows:
    • Mandatory Reporting: If one of our physicians has reasonable cause to believe that a minor child patient may be an abused or neglected child, our physicians, as mandatory reporters, are required to immediately report suspected abuse or neglect; and
    • Reporting of Abuse With Your Permission: If one of our physicians has reasonable cause to believe that an adult patient may be a victim of abuse, our physicians will offer to a suspected adult victim of abuse immediate and adequate information regarding services available to him or her.
  7. Law Enforcement. We may share information for law enforcement purposes or federal compliance investigations.
  8. Specialized Purposes. We may share information for other specialized purposes, but we will only disclose as much information as is necessary. For example, we may disclose your protected health information:
    • to the armed forces as authorized by military command authorities;
    • to coroners, medical examiners, funeral directors, and organ procurement organizations (for organ, eye, or tissue donation);
    • for national security, intelligence, and protection of the President;
    • to a correctional institution or to law enforcement officials to provide an inmate with health care, to protect the health and safety of the inmate and others, or for the safety, administration, and maintenance of the correctional institution; or
    • to an employer for purposes of workers’ compensation and work site safety laws.
  9. Averting a Serious Threat. We may disclose information to prevent serious harm to you or others.
  10. Family and Friends. We may share information with those involved in your care when appropriate or legally authorized.
  11. Information to Patients. We may contact you with appointment reminders or information about treatment options and services.
  1. Authorization. We won’t use or share your health information for purposes not listed in this notice without your written permission. You can revoke your authorization anytime in writing, except where we’ve already acted on it.
  2. Restrictions. You may ask us to limit how we use or share your information. We’ll consider your request, but we may still use it for emergencies. We must honor requests to not share information with your insurer if you pay in full.
  3. Confidential Communication. You can ask us to contact you in a specific way or at a different address.
  4. Copy of Health Information. You have the right to see and get a copy of your health information, with some limits under the law (45 CFR 164.524). To request this, send a written request to our Medical Records Department. We may charge a fee for copying and mailing. We’ll respond within the legally required timeframe. If we decline access, we’ll explain why in writing and tell you how to appeal.
  5. Amendment of Health Information. You can ask us to correct your records if they’re wrong or incomplete. Requests must be in writing. We’ll respond within 60 days and explain if we deny the request.
  6. Accounting of Disclosure. You can request a list of certain times we shared your information in the past six years (excluding treatment, payment, and operations).
  7. Paper Copy of this Privacy Notice. You can request a paper copy of this notice anytime, even if you received it electronically.
  8. Complaints. You can file a written complaint with us or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services if you believe your privacy rights were violated. We will not retaliate against anyone filing a complaint.

Our Right to Change This Notice

We may update our privacy practices at any time and apply changes to current and future health information. When we make updates, we will issue a new notice with the effective date. The updated notice will be available in our office and on our website at https://www.chiroone.com/privacy-practices-page.

Whom To Contact

For questions, privacy concerns, or to exercise your rights, contact our Privacy Officer at PrivacyOfficer@ChiroOne.Net