Privacy Policy

NOTICE OF PRIVACY PRACTICES. THIS JOINT NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW YOUR MEDICAL INFORMATION MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN ACCESS YOUR MEDICAL INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW CAREFULLY.

Salud Family Health Centers provides health care services to patients in partnership with physicians and other professionals and organizations. The following privacy practices are followed by Salud Family Health Centers and Associated Pharmacists, Inc. Your medical information will be shared only as necessary to conduct health care treatment and payment.

This Joint Notice of Privacy Practices between Salud Family Health Centers and Associated Pharmacists, Inc. will serve as authority to access and share your medical information as outlined by the terms of this Notice.

I. Understanding Your Health Information

Each time you visit Salud Family Health Centers, a record of your visit is created. This record contains your name and other information that may identify you, your symptoms, examination and test results, diagnoses, treatment, plan for future health care, and financial information. This record is sometimes referred to as your "medical record" or "medical chart." This record allows:

• Doctors, nurses, and other health professionals to plan your treatment.
• Salud Family Health Centers to obtain payment for services we provide to you, such as from insurance companies, Medicaid, or you.
• Salud Family Health Centers to measure the quality of care provided to you.

As always, Salud is committed to ensuring your health information remains confidential. Salud will not use or provide your health information without your written permission, except as stated in this Notice.

II. How We Will Use and Give Out Your Health Information

a. Treatment, Payment, and Health Care Operations

Salud will use and give out your health information to provide you with health care treatments, to receive payment for services and for health care operations. For example:

• Salud will give your health information to health care professionals not on Salud staff, such as other doctors and hospital staff, who help provide care to you.
• We may send a bill to your health insurance plan or to you.
• Salud Family Health Centers may use your medical record to review our performance and make sure you continue to receive quality health care.

b. Other Uses and Disclosures Allowed or Required by Law

ONLY AFTER OBTAINING PERMISSION FROM YOU, we may use or give out your health information for the following purposes under limited circumstances:

• To people who are involved in your care or who help pay for your care, such as your family, your close personal friends, or any other person chosen by you, to notify them of your location, general health, and to assist you in your health care (such as to pick-up medicine or help with follow-up care).
• To government agencies that oversee Salud Family Health Centers (such as license and certification inspectors).
• To government agencies that have the right to receive and collect health information (such as to control disease outbreaks).
• When we are ordered by a court or judge.
• To workers' compensation programs when your health problem is from a work-related injury.
• When law enforcement requests information (such as to prevent danger or injury).
• To coroners and funeral directors to allow them to carry out their duties.
• To organ donor agencies (subject to applicable laws).
• For research studies that meet all privacy law requirements (such as research to stop a disease).
• To avoid a serious threat to the health or safety of others.
• To contact you about new treatments or medicines that may help you.
• To business associates of Salud Family Health Centers that help us perform required tasks, such as our accountants, computer consultants, and billing companies (only if the business associate agrees in writing to keep your health information confidential as required by law).
• For any other purpose required or allowed by law.

c. Other Uses and Disclosures Requiring Your Written Permission

Except as stated above, we will only use or give out your health information after receiving your written permission on an Authorization form. You may revoke your authorization at any time by notifying us in writing that you wish to do so.

Subject to certain legal limits, you have rights regarding the use and disclosure of your health information, including the rights to:

• Request limits on uses of your health information.
• Receive confidential communications of your health information.
• Inspect and copy your health information.
• Request a change to your health information .
• Receive a record of how we have used and given out your health information.
• Obtain a copy of this Notice of Privacy Practices.

IV. Questions, Concerns, and Changes to this Notice

If you have any questions or want to talk about any of the information in this Notice of Privacy Practices, please contact the business manager at the clinic or your visit, or the Privacy Officer with Associated Pharmacists, Inc.:

If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with Salud Family Health Centers, Associated Pharmacists, Inc., or with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. To file a complaint with Salud, please contact the Business Manager at the clinic where you were seen. To file a complaint with Associated Pharmacists, Inc., contact the Privacy Officer. All complaints must be submitted in writing. We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

We may change our Notice of Privacy Practices in the future. Such changes will apply to your health information that we created or received before the effective date of the change. We will notify you of any changes to our Notice of Privacy Practices by posting the changed notice at Salud Family Health Centers and on our Website.