 THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW PERSONAL HEALTH INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.The terms of this Notice of Privacy Practices apply to Sanford Health Plan operating as an affiliated covered entity with Sanford Health Plan and Sanford Health Plan of Minnesota. The organization will share personal health information of members as necessary to carry out treatment, payment, and health care operations as permitted by law. We are required by law to maintain the privacy of our members' personal health information and to provide members with notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to your personal health information. We are required to abide by the terms of this Notice so long as it remains in effect. We reserve the right to change the terms of this Notice of Privacy Practices as necessary and to make the new Notice effective for all personal health information maintained by us. Copies of revised notices will be mailed to all members then covered by the plan and copies may be obtained by mailing a request to: Sanford Health Plan, Member Services Department, PO Box 91110, Sioux Falls, SD 57109-1110. USES AND DISCLOSURES OF YOUR PERSONAL HEALTH INFORMATION Your Authorization. Except as outlined below, we will not use or disclose your personal health information for any purpose unless you have signed a form authorizing the use or disclosure. You have the right to revoke that authorization in writing unless we have taken any action in reliance on the authorization. Disclosures for Treatment. We will make disclosures of your personal health information as necessary for your treatment. For instance, a doctor or health facility involved in your care may request certain of your personal health information that we hold in order to make decisions about your care. Uses and Disclosures for Payment. We will make uses and disclosures of your personal health infor-mation as necessary for payment purposes. For instance, we may use information regarding your medi-cal procedures and treatment to process and pay claims, to determine whether services are medically necessary or to otherwise pre-authorize or certify services as covered under your health benefits plan. We may also forward such information to another health plan which may also have an obligation to process and pay claims on your behalf. Uses and Disclosures for Health Care Operations. We will use and disclose your personal health information as necessary, and as permitted by law, for our health care operations which include credentialing health care providers, peer review, business management, accreditation and licensing, utilization review and management, quality improvement and assurance, enrollment, underwriting, reinsurance, compliance, auditing, rating, and other functions related to your health benefits plan. We may also disclose your personal health information to another health care facility, health care profes-sional, or health plan for such things as quality assurance and case management, but only if that facility, professional, or plan also has or had a patient relationship with you. Family and Friends Involved In Your Care. With your approval, we may from time to time disclose your personal health information to designated family, friends, and others who are involved in your care or in payment for your care in order to facilitate that person's involvement in caring for you or paying for your care. If you are unavailable, incapacitated, or facing an emergency medical situation, and we determine that a limited disclosure may be in your best interest, we may share limited personal health information with such individuals without your approval. If you have designated a person to receive information regarding payment of the premium on your Medicare supplement policy, we will inform that person when your premium has not been paid. We may also disclose limited personal health information to a public or private entity that is authorized to assist in disaster relief efforts in order for that entity to locate a family member or other persons that may be involved in some aspect of caring for you. Business Associates. Certain aspects and components of our services are performed through contracts with outside persons or organizations, such as auditing, accreditation, actuarial services, legal services, etc. At times it may be necessary for us to provide certain of your personal health information to one or more of these outside persons or organizations who assist us with our health care operations. In all cases, we require these business associates to appropriately safeguard the privacy of your information. Communications With You. We may communicate with you regarding your claims, premiums, or other things connected with your health plan. You have the right to request and we will accommodate reason-able requests by you to receive communications regarding your personal health information from us by alternative means or at alternative locations. For instance, if you wish messages to not be left on voice mail or sent to a particular address, we will accommodate reasonable requests. In considering reasonable requests, Sanford Health Plan may consider if disclosure of all or part of the information would endanger the member. You may request such confidential communication in writing and may send your request to Sanford Health Plan, Member Services Department, PO Box 91110, Sioux Falls, SD 57109-1110. Other Health-Related Products or Services. We may, from time to time, use your personal health information to determine whether you might be interested in or benefit from treatment alternatives or other health-related programs, products or services which may be available to you as a member of the health plan. For example, we may use your personal health information to identify whether you have a particular illness, and contact you to advise you that a disease management program to help you manage your illness better is available to you as a health plan member. We will not use your information to communicate with you about products or services which are not health-related without your written permission. Information Received Pre-enrollment. We may request and receive from you and your health care providers personal health information prior to your enrollment in the health plan or issuance of a policy. We will use this information to determine whether you are eligible to enroll in the health plan or for a policy, and to determine your rates. We will protect the confidentiality of that information in the same manner as all other personal health information we maintain and, if you do not enroll in the health plan or if the policy is not issued, we will not use or disclose the information about you we obtained for any other purpose. Research. In limited circumstances, we may use and disclose your personal health information for research purposes. For example, a research organization may wish to compare outcomes of patients by payer source and will need to review a series of records that we hold. In all cases where your specific authorization has not been obtained, your privacy will be protected by strict confidentiality requirements applied by an Institutional Review Board or privacy board which oversees the research or by representa-tions of the researchers that limit their use and disclosure of member information. Other Uses and Disclosures. We are permitted or required by law to make certain other uses and disclo sures of your personal health information without your authorization. We may release your personal health information for any purpose required by law; neglect; we may also release your personal health information as required by law if we believe you to be a victim of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence; RIGHTS THAT YOU HAVE Access to Your Personal Health Information. You have the right to copy and/or inspect much of the personal health information that we retain on your behalf. All requests for access must be made in writing and signed by you or your representative. You may obtain an access request form from Sanford Health Plan, Member Services Department, PO Box 91110, Sioux Falls, SD 57109-1110. Amendments to Your Personal Health Information. You have the right to request in writing that personal health information that we maintain about you be amended or corrected. We are not obligated to make all requested amendments but will give each request careful consideration. All amendment re-quests, in order to be considered by us, must be in writing, signed by you or your representative, and must state the reasons for the amendment/correction request. If an amendment or correction you request is made by us, we may also notify others who work with us and have copies of the uncorrected record if we believe that such notification is necessary. You may obtain an amendment request form from Sanford Health Plan, Member Services Department, PO Box 91110, Sioux Falls, SD 57109-1110. Accounting for Disclosures of Your Personal Health Information. You have the right to receive an accounting of certain disclosures made by us of your personal health information after April 14, 2003. Requests must be made in writing and signed by you or your representative. Accounting request forms are available from Sanford Health Plan, Member Services Department, PO Box 91110, Sioux Falls, SD 57109-1110. Restrictions on Use and Disclosure of Your Personal Health Information. You have the right to request restrictions on certain of our uses and disclosures of your personal health information for treatment, payment, or health care operations by notifying us of your request for a restriction in writing. A restriction request form can be obtained from Sanford Health Plan, Member Services Department, PO Box 91110, Sioux Falls, SD 57109-1110. We are not required to agree to your restriction request but will attempt to accommodate reasonable requests when appropriate and we retain the right to terminate an agreed-to restriction if we believe such termination is appropriate. In the event of a termination by us, we will notify you of such termination. You also have the right to terminate, in writing or orally, any agreed-to restriction to sending such termination notice to Sanford Health Plan, Member Services Department, PO Box 91110, Sioux Falls, SD 57109-1110. COMPLAINTS If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you can file a written complaint with Sanford Health Plan, Member Services Department, PO Box 91110, Sioux Falls, SD 57109-1110 or you can file a verbal complaint by calling Sanford Health Plan, Member Services Department at (605) 328-6800 or toll free at 1-800-752-5863.You may also file a complaint with the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Washington D.C. in writing within 180 days of a violation of your rights. There will be no retaliation for filing a complaint. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION If you have questions or need further assistance regarding this Notice, you may contact Sanford Health Plan, Member Services Department at (605) 328-6800 or toll free at 1-800-752-5863. As a member you retain the right to obtain a paper copy of this Notice of Privacy Practices, even if you have requested such copy by e-mail or other electronic means. EFFECTIVE DATE This Notice of Privacy Practices is effective April 14, 2003. |
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