Notice of HIPAA Privacy Practices of PrePaidLab.com

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 AND REPORT ANY GRIEVANCE TO THE PrePaidLab.com PRIVACY OFFICER - Sherri Jeffords via our contact form.

The Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) is a federal program that requires that all medical records and other individually identifiable health information used or disclosed by us in any form, whether electronically, on paper, or orally, are kept properly confidential. This Act gives you, the Patient, significant new rights to understand and control how your health information is used. HIPAA provides penalties for covered entities that misuse personal health information.

We have prepared this "Summary Notice of HIPAA Privacy Practices" to explain how we are required to maintain the privacy of your health information and how we may use and disclose your health information. A Notice of HIPAA Privacy Practices containing a more complete description of the uses and disclosures of your health information is available to you upon request.

We may use and disclose your medical records for each of the following purposes: treatment, payment, and health care operations. TREATMENT means providing, coordinating, or managing health care and related services by one or more health care providers. PAYMENT means such activities as obtaining reimbursement for services, billing or collection activities and utilization review. HEALTH CARE OPERATIONS include the business aspects of running our laboratory service practice, such as conducting quality assessment and improvement activities, auditing functions, cost-management analysis and customer service.

Other Ways we might use of disclose PHI about You without Your Authorization

• Appointments and Other Health Information. We may send you reminders for medical care or checkups. We may send you information about health services that may be of interest to you.
• As Required By Law and For Law Enforcement. We will use and disclose PHI about you when required or permitted by federal or state law or by a court order.
• For Abuse Reports and Investigations. We are required by law to report any allegations of child abuse or neglect.
• To Avoid Harm. We may disclose PHI about you to law enforcement in order to avoid a serious threat to the health and safety of a person or the public.
• For Research. We may use PHI about you for studies and to develop reports. These reports do not identify specific people.

Other Uses and Disclosures Require Your Written Authorization

• For All Other Situations. We will ask for your written authorization before using or disclosing PHI about you. You may cancel this authorization at any time in writing, or by other appropriate means of communication if necessary. We cannot take back any uses or disclosures already made with your authorization.
• Other Laws Protect PHI. Many of our programs have other laws for the use and disclosure of PHI about you. For example, you must give your written authorization to us before we can use and disclose chemical dependency treatment records.

We may also create and distribute de-identified health information by removing all references to individually identifiable information. We may contact you to provide laboratory draw site information or other health-related services that may be of interest to you.

Any other uses and disclosures will be made only with your written authorization. You may revoke such authorization in writing and we are required to honor and abide by that written request, except to the extent that we have already taken actions relying on your authorization. You have the following rights with respect to your protected health information, which you can exercise by presenting a written request to the PRE-PAID LAB, LLC Privacy Officer:

1. Right to See and Get Copies of Your PHI. In most cases, you have the right to look at or get copies of your PHI. You must make the request in writing. You may be charged a fee for the cost of copying and mailing the PHI to you.
2. Right to Request to Correct or Update Your PHI. You may ask us to change or add missing PHI if you think there is a mistake. You must make the request in writing and provide a reason for your request. However, there are conditions under which we may deny this request.
3. Right to Get a List of Disclosures. You have the right to ask us for a list of disclosures made after April 14, 2003 and up to six years prior to the date you made the request. You must make the request in writing. This list will not include the times that PHI about you was disclosed for treatment, payment, or health care operations. This list will not include PHI about you provided directly to you or your family, or PHI that you authorized.
4. Right to Request Limits on Uses or Disclosures of Your PHI. You have the right to ask us to limit how PHI about you is used or disclosed. You must make the request in writing and tell us what PHI you want to limit and to whom you want the limits to apply. We are not required to agree to the restriction. You can request restrictions be terminated in writing or verbally.
5. Right to Revoke Permission. If you are asked to sign an authorization to use or disclose PHI about you, you can cancel that authorization at any time. You must make the request in writing. This will not affect PHI that has already been shared.
6. Right To Choose How We Communicate With You. You have the right to ask us to share your PHI with you in a certain way or in a certain place. For example, you may ask us to send PHI about you to your work address instead of your home address. You must make this request in writing. You do not have to explain the basis for your request.
7. Right to File a Complaint. You have the right to file a complaint if you do not agree with how we have used or disclosed PHI about you.
8. Right to Get a Paper Copy of this Notice. You have the right to ask for a paper copy of this notice at any time.

Questions and Complaints: You may contact us (info below) to file a complaint or to report a problem with how we have used or disclosed your PHI.
Your services will not be affected by any complaints you make. We cannot retaliate against you for filing a complaint or refusing to agree to something that you believe to be unlawful. You may also file a complaint with the Ohio or U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.