Wasef Health, PC HIPAA Privacy Statement
Notice of Privacy Practices for Protected Health Information (PHI)
This Notice of Privacy Practices (“Notice”) describes how Wasef Health, PC (“we,” “us,” or “our”) may use and disclose your Protected Health Information (PHI) to carry out treatment, payment, or healthcare operations and for other purposes that are permitted or required by law. This Notice also describes your rights regarding your PHI. We are required by law to maintain the privacy of your PHI, to provide you with this Notice of our legal duties and privacy practices, and to abide by the terms of this Notice.
1. Uses and Disclosures of PHI
We may use and disclose your PHI for the following purposes:
- Treatment: to provide, coordinate, or manage your healthcare and related services, including communication with other healthcare providers about your treatment.
- Payment: to obtain payment for healthcare services, which may include verifying insurance coverage, billing, collection activities, and sharing PHI with insurance companies or collection agencies.
- Healthcare operations: including quality assessment, improvement activities, case management, accreditation, licensing, credentialing, and conducting or arranging for medical reviews, audits, or legal services.
- As required by law: when required by federal, state, or local law.
- Public health and safety: to prevent or control disease, injury, or disability; report child abuse or neglect; report reactions to medications or problems with products; or notify persons exposed to a communicable disease.
- Health oversight activities: to health oversight agencies for audits, investigations, inspections, and licensure.
- Judicial and administrative proceedings: in response to a court or administrative order, subpoena, discovery request, or other lawful process.
- Law enforcement: as required to report certain types of wounds or injuries, or to comply with a court order, warrant, or other legal process.
- Research: when research has been approved by an institutional review board and privacy protections are in place.
- Organ and tissue donation: to organizations that handle organ procurement, transplantation, or donation.
- Workers’ compensation: for programs that provide benefits for work-related injuries or illnesses.
- Military and veterans: as required by military authorities if you are a member of the armed forces.
- Inmates: to a correctional institution or law enforcement official having custody of you.
2. Your Rights Regarding PHI
- Right to inspect and copy your PHI that we maintain, with certain exceptions. To request access, submit a written request to our Privacy Officer. We may charge a reasonable fee for the costs of copying, mailing, or other supplies.
- Right to amend your PHI if you believe it is incorrect or incomplete. Submit a written request specifying the information you believe is incorrect and why.
- Right to an accounting of disclosures of your PHI made by us in the past six years, except for disclosures made for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations.
- Right to request restrictions on our use or disclosure of your PHI for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations. We are not required to agree, but will consider your request.
- Right to request confidential communications about your PHI in a certain way or at a certain location.
- Right to a paper copy of this Notice, even if you have agreed to receive it electronically.
- Right to be notified of a breach of your PHI.
3. Transmission of PHI
We are committed to protecting the privacy of your PHI and ensure that any electronic transmission of PHI complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule (45 CFR 164). This includes the use of Secure-Socket Layer (SSL) or equivalent technology for the transmission of PHI, as well as adherence to all applicable security standards.
4. Changes to This Notice
We reserve the right to change this Notice. A revised Notice will be effective for PHI we already have about you, as well as any information we receive in the future. We will post a copy of the current Notice on our website with the effective date.
5. Complaints
If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with our Privacy Officer or with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. You will not be retaliated against for filing a complaint.
6. State-Specific Provisions
In addition to the privacy practices described above, we comply with applicable state-specific privacy laws related to PHI, including but not limited to provisions in New York, Texas, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, and California. Residents of these states may have additional rights. Please contact our Privacy Officer for more information about your rights under specific state laws.
7. Contact Information
To exercise any of your rights, or if you have any questions about this Notice or our privacy practices, please contact our Privacy Officer at:
Wasef Health, PC
c/o Michael Wasef, MD
5260 78th Ave N, PO Box 1697, Pinellas Park, FL 33780
Email: contact@wasef-health.com
Web: wasef-health.com
You may also contact the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Office for Civil Rights at www.hhs.gov/ocr.