HIPAA Policy

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. 

EHCS is a healthcare product provider subject to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996, as amended. We have always been committed to protecting the information you share with us and are required by law to:

• Maintain the privacy of your protected health information(PHI); electronic/computer information, telephone & cell phone communications, verbal or faxed information

• Provide this Notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to protected health information to any customer who requests it

• Abide by the terms of this Notice until adoption of a new one

• To post this notice on our website: www.myEHCS.com.

“We” and “us” in this document refers to any individual employed by EHCS. All employees are authorized to release your protected health information for the reasons listed below.

Uses and Disclosures for Payment, Treatment or Healthcare Operations: Under HIPAA, we may use, receive or disclose your protected health information for payment, treatment or healthcare operations without obtaining a written authorization from you. Examples of this use include but are not limited to:

Payment: We may use and disclose your protected health information to receive payment for the products and services we provide. Payment activities may include sending claims to your health insurance carrier or medical plan, reviewing the medical necessity of the services rendered with your physician, and coordinating the payment of benefits between medical plans.

Treatment: We may disclose protected health information to your medical care providers for management or coordination of that care.

Healthcare Operations: We may use and disclose your protected health information for our business planning and operational purposes. For example, we may use or disclose your protected health information for activities such as verification of eligibility for benefits with your health insurance carrier or for training and quality control purposes within our organization. Your protected health information is stored in locked file cabinets.

Business Associates: We may contract with other businesses for certain services. These businesses may require access to your personal health information in order to perform a payment or healthcare operations for us. These Business Associates must agree in writing that they will follow these privacy practices and will protect the privacy of your health information.

Unless you authorize us otherwise, your protected health information will be available only to the individuals who need the information to conduct payment, treatment or healthcare operations activities.

Other Disclosures EHCS may make:

• To comply with legal proceedings, court or administrative order or subpoena

• To law enforcement officials for limited law enforcement purposes

• To public Health Authorities for certain required public health activities

• To avert a serious threat to the health or safety of you or any other person

• To comply with laws and regulations related to workers’ compensation or similar programs

• To a coroner, medical examiner or funeral director for purposes of carrying out his or her duties

• To federal officials for lawful intelligence activities or if you are imprisoned

• To your personal representative appointed by you or designated by law

• When otherwise required by law

• To inform you of other products and services that may be of interest to you

These uses and disclosures may be subject to special rules under HIPAA or other laws.

Limitations on Use and Disclosure: If a use or disclosure of your protected health information identified in this Notice is subject to a law more stringent than HIPAA, the more stringent law will apply. If you have a question about your rights under any particular federal or state law, please write to the EHCS Privacy Contact.

Authorizations Required for all Other Uses and Disclosures: Any other use or disclosure of your protected health information not identified within this Notice will be made only with your written authorization. You have the right to limit the type of information and the persons to whom it should be disclosed. You may revoke your written authorization at any time, and the revocation will be followed to the extent action on the authorization has not yet been taken.

YOUR RIGHTS:

Below are your privacy and confidentiality rights as a customer of EHCS.

• Request that EHCS places a restriction on certain uses and disclosures of your protected health information. We are not required to agree to a requested restriction. To request a restriction, please write to our Privacy Contact and provide specific information as to the disclosures that you wish to restrict and the reasons for your request. We will respond in writing.
• Request that our confidential communications of your protected health information be sent to alternative locations or by alternative communicative means. For example, you may ask that we send information or products to your office rather than your home address. We are not required to accommodate your request unless the request is reasonable.
• Make a written request to inspect and obtain a copy of the protected health information that may be used by EHCS to make decisions about your care or treatment. Be specific as to the information requested. A reasonable fee may be imposed for copying and mailing the requested information.
• Request that EHCS amend your protected health information or record if you believe that information is incorrect or incomplete. EHCS cannot amend information it did not create and will refer you to the provider of service if you are requesting amendment to diagnosis or treatment information.
• Receive an accounting of certain disclosures of your protected health information made by EHCS for purposes other than treatment, payment or healthcare operations in the six years prior to the date of the request.
• Request and obtain a paper copy of this Notice at any time, even if you have agreed to receive it electronically.

To exercise any of these rights, please write to the address listed at the end of this Notice. (All requests must be made in writing.) There are circumstances where EHCS is allowed to deny or limit your request. In such event you may have the right to object and obtain a review of our decision. We will provide you with further information about those rights at that time. If you would like more specific information about these matters, contact the EHCS Privacy Contact.

Changes to this Notice: EHCS reserves the right to change the terms of this Notice and its privacy practices and to make the new provisions effective for all protected health information it maintains. Any amendments will be made available to you in the same way that this Notice is available to you.

To view our full Privacy Practice Notice, click here.