NOTICE OF PRIVACY PRACTICES
THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.
This Privacy Notice gives you information required by the privacy provision of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 and its implementing regulations (HIPAA Privacy Rules) about the duties and privacy practices of ADVANTAGE MEDICAL SUPPLY to protect the privacy of your medical information. ADVANTAGE MEDICAL SUPPLY is providing this notice to you because our records show that we provide Durable Medical Equipment and/or Medical Supplies to you. We use the terms Durable Medical Equipment and/or Medical Supplies in this notice to refer to the services we provide to you.
THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS NOTICE IS September 23, 2013. We are required to follow the terms of this notice until we replace it, and we reserve the right to change the terms of this notice at any time. If we make changes, we will revise it and send a new Privacy Notice to all persons to whom we are required to give the new notice. We reserve the right to make the new changes apply to all your medical information maintained by us before and after the effective date of the new notice.
Purposes for Which We May Use or Disclose your Medical Information Without Your Consent or Authorization
We may use and disclose your medical information for the following purposes:
- Healthcare Providers’ Treatment Purposes – For example, we may disclose your medical information to your doctor, at the doctor’s request, for your treatment by him/her.
- Payment – For example, we may use or disclose your medical information to another covered entity or healthcare provider for the payment activities of the entity that receives your medical information, or to provide eligibility information to your doctor when you receive products and/or services. We may also use and disclose your medical information to another covered entity to submit medical claims on your behalf and to collect deductibles and co-payment amounts.
- Healthcare Operations – For example, we may use or disclose your medical information to conduct quality assessment and improvement activities; to authorize business associates to perform data aggregation services; to engage in care coordination or case management; and to manage, plan or develop our business. In certain circumstances, we may also disclose your medical information to another covered entity for the limited healthcare operations activities and healthcare fraud and abuse compliance activities of the entity that receives your medical information.
- Health Services – We may use your medical information to contact you to give you information about medical equipment and/or medical supply alternatives or other health-related benefits and services that may be of interest to you. We may disclose your medical information to our business associates to assist in these activities.
- As Required by Law – For example, we must allow the US Department of Health and Human Services, the National Supplier Clearing House and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to audit our records. We may also disclose your medical information as authorized by and to the extent necessary to comply with workers’ compensation or other similar laws, including inspection by an Accrediting Organization required By the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
- To Business Associates – We may disclose your medical information to business associates we hire to assist us. Each of our business associates must agree in writing to ensure the continuing confidentiality and security of your medical information.
We may also use and disclose your medical information as follows:
- To comply with legal proceedings, such as a court or administrative order or subpoena.
- To law enforcement officials for limited law enforcement purposes.
- To a family member, friend or other person, for the purpose of helping you with your healthcare or with payment for your healthcare, if you
- are in a situation such as a medical emergency and you cannot give your agreement to us to do this.
- To your personal representatives appointed by you or designated by applicable law.
- For research purposes in limited circumstances.
- To a coroner, medical examiner, or funeral director about a deceased person.
- To avert a serious threat to your health or safety or the health or safety of others.
- To a governmental agency authorized to oversee the health care system or government programs.
- To federal officials for lawful intelligence, counterintelligence and other national security purposes.
- To public health authorities for public health purposes.
- To appropriate military authorities, if you are a member of the armed forces.
Potential Impact of State Law
In some situations, the HIPAA Privacy Rules do not preempt (or take precedence over) state privacy laws that give you greater privacy protections. As a result, the privacy laws of a particular state might impose a privacy standard under which we will be required to operate. For example, Alabama law privides additional protections for confidential domestic abuse information in certain circumstances.
Uses and Disclosures with Your Permission
We will not use or disclose your medical information for any other purposes unless you give us your written authorization to do so. For example, in general and subject to specific conditions, we will not use or disclose your protected health information for marketing, and will not sell your protected health information, unless you give us a written authorization. If you give us written authorization to use or disclose your medical information for a purpose that is not described in this notice, in most cases, you may revoke it in writing at any time. Your revocation will be effective for all your medical information we maintain, unless we have taken action in reliance on your authorization.
Your Rights
You may make a written request to us to do one or more of the following concerning your medical information that we maintain:
- To put additional restrictions on our use and disclosure of your medical information. We do not have to agree to your request.
- To communicate with you in confidence about your medical information by a different means or at a different location than we are currently doing. We do not have to agree to your request unless such confidential communications are necessary to avoid endangering you, and your request continues to allow us to collect claims billed on your behalf. Your request must specify the alternative means or location.
- To see and get copies of your medical information. In limited cases, we do not have to agree to your request.
- To correct your medical information. In some cases, we do not have to agree to your request.
- To receive a list of disclosures of your medical information that we and our business associates made for certain purposes for the last six years.
- To send you a paper copy of this notice if you received this notice by e-mail or on the internet.
If you want to exercise any of these rights described in this notice, please contact our office (below). We will give you the necessary information and forms for you to complete and return to our Office. In some cases, we may charge you a nominal, cost-based fee to carry out your request.
In addition, we are required by law to notify affected individuals following a breach of unsecured protected health information.
Complaints
If you believe we have violated your privacy rights, you have the right to complain to us or to the Secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services. You may file a complaint with us at our Office (below). We will not retaliate against you if you choose to file a complaint with us or with the US department of Health and Human Services.
Contact Office
To request additional copies of this notice or to receive more information about our privacy practices or your rights, please contact us at the following Office:
Advantage Medical Supply
107 N Florida Street
Mobile, Alabama 36607
Telephone: 251-661-2238
- This notice is effective as of 01/01/2020.
