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Notice of Privacy Practices

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KAISER PERMANENTE - COLORADO REGION

I. WHAT IS "PROTECTED HEALTH INFORMATION?"

II. ABOUT OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO PROTECT YOUR PHI By law, we must

1. protect the privacy of your PHI;
2. tell you about your rights and our legal duties with respect to your PHI; and
3. tell you about our privacy practices and follow our notice currently in effect.

We take these responsibilities seriously and, as in the past, we will continue to take appropriate steps to safeguard the privacy of your PHI.

III. YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING YOUR PHI

Your right to see and receive copies of your PHI In general, you have a right to see and receive copies of your PHI in desig­na­ted record sets, such as your medical record or billing record. If you would like to see or receive a copy of such a record, please write to us at Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Colorado, Release of Information Department, 14701 E. Exposition Avenue, Aurora, CO 80012. After we receive your written request, we will let you know when and how you can see or obtain a copy of your record. In certain circumstances, if you agree, we will give you a summary or explanation of your PHI instead of providing copies. We are permitted to charge you a fee for the copies, summary, or explanation. If we don't have the record you asked for but we know who does, we will tell you who to contact to request it. In limited situations, we may deny some or all of your request to see or receive copies of your records, but if we do, we will tell you why in writing and explain your right, if any, to have our denial reviewed.

Your right to choose how we send PHI to you You may ask us to send your PHI to you at a different address (for example, your work address) or by different means (for example, fax instead of regular mail). When we can reasonably and lawfully agree to your request, we will. However, we are permitted to charge you for any additional cost of sending your PHI to different addresses or by different means.

Your right to correct or update your PHI If you believe there is a mistake in your PHI or that important information is missing, you may request that we correct or add to the record. Please write to us and tell us what you are asking for and why we should make the correction or addition. Send your requests to Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Colorado, Medical Record Department, 16601 East Centretech Pkwy, Aurora, CO 80011. We will respond in writing after receiving your request. If we approve your request, we will make the correction or addition to your PHI. If we deny your request, we will tell you why and explain your right to file a written statement of disagreement.

Your right to an accounting of disclosures of PHI You may ask us for a list of our disclosures of your PHI. Write to us at Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Colorado, Release of Information Department, 14701 E. Exposition Avenue, Aurora, CO 80012. The list we give you will include disclosures made in the last six years, unless you request a shorter time or if less than six years have passed since April 14, 2003. For example, if you requested a list of disclosures on April 14, 2005, the list would cover only two years. You are entitled to one disclosure accounting in any 12-month period at no charge. If you request any additional accountings less than 12 months later, we may charge a fee. An accounting does not include certain disclosures, for example, disclosures to carry out treatment, payment and health care operations; disclosures that occurred prior to April 14, 2003; disclosures for which KP had a signed authorization; disclosures of your PHI to you; disclosures from a KP facility directory; disclosures for notifications for disaster relief purposes; or disclosures to persons involved in your care and persons acting on your behalf.

Your right to request limits on uses and disclosures of your PHI You may request that we limit our uses and disclosures of your PHI for treatment, payment, and health care operations purposes. However, by law, we do not have to agree to your request. Because we strongly believe that this information is needed to appropriately manage the care of our members/patients, it is our policy not to agree to requests for restrictions.

Your right to receive a paper copy of this notice You also have a right to receive a paper copy of this notice upon request. Please refer to section VII of this notice on how to request a copy.

IV. KAISER PERMANENTE COMPANIES SUBJECT TO THIS NOTICE This notice applies to the Kaiser Permanente Colorado Region, which includes:

• The Colorado Permanente Medical Group (CPMG);
• Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Colorado, including its health plan and provider operations;
• Kaiser Foundation Hospitals (KFH), as discussed below; and
• Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. (KFHP, Inc.), as discussed below.

V. HOW WE MAY USE AND DISCLOSE YOUR PHI

• Treatment: This is the most important use and disclosure of your PHI. For example, our phy­si­cians, nurses, and other health care personnel, including trainees, involved in your care use and disclose your PHI to diagnose your condition and evaluate your health care needs. Our personnel will use and disclose your PHI in order to provide and coordinate the care and services you need, for example: prescriptions; X-rays; and lab work. If you need care from health care providers who are not part of Kaiser Permanente, such as community resources to assist with your health care needs at home, we may disclose your PHI to them.

• Treatment alternatives and health-related benefits and services: In some instances, the law permits us to contact you: 1) to describe our net­work or describe the extent to which we offer and pay for various products and services; 2) for your treatment; 3) for case man­age­ment and care coordination; or 4) to direct or recommend available treatment options, therapies, health care providers, or care settings. For example, we may tell you about a new drug or procedure or about educational or health man­age­ment activities.

• Payment: Your PHI may be needed to determine our re­spon­si­bil­ity to pay for, or to permit us to bill and collect payment for, treatment and health-related services that you receive. For example, we may have an obligation to pay for health care you receive from an outside provider. When you or the provider sends us the bill for health care services, we use and disclose your PHI to determine how much, if any, of the bill we are re­spon­si­ble for paying.

• Health care operations: We may use and disclose your PHI for certain health care operations, such as: quality assessment and improvement; training and evaluation of health care professionals; licensing; accreditation; activities relating to the creation, renewal or replacement of health insurance or health benefits; conducting medical review; legal services; auditing functions, including fraud and abuse detection and compliance programs; customer services; and determining premiums and other costs of providing health care. We may also disclose your PHI for certain health care operations of other health plans and health care providers.

• Business associates: We may contract with business associates to perform certain functions or activities on our behalf, such as payment and health care operations. These business associates must agree to safeguard your PHI.

• Appointment reminders: Your PHI allows us to contact you about appointments for treatment or other health care you may need.

• Specific types of PHI: There are stricter requirements for use and disclosure of some types of PHI, for example, information about drug and alcohol abuse, AIDS and HIV, mental health, genetic testing, and artificial insemination. However, there are still circumstances in which these types of information may be used or disclosed without your authorization. If you become a patient in our chemical dependency program, we will give you a separate written notice, as required by law, about your privacy rights for your chemical dependency program PHI.

• Communications with family and others when you are present: Sometimes a family member or other person involved in your care will be present when we are discussing your PHI with you. If you object, please tell us and we won't discuss your PHI or we will ask the person to leave.

• Communications with family and others when you are not present: There may be times when it is necessary to disclose your PHI to a family member or other person involved in your care because there is an emergency, you are not present, or you lack the decision making capacity to agree or object. In those instances, we will use our professional judgment to determine if it's in your best interest to disclose your PHI. If so, we will limit the disclosure to the PHI that is directly relevant to the person's involvement with your health care. For example, we may allow someone to pick up a prescription for you.

• Disclosure in case of disaster relief: We may disclose your name, city of residence, age, gender, and general condition to a public or private disaster relief organ­i­za­tion to assist disaster relief efforts, unless you object at the time.

• Disclosures to parents as personal representatives of minors: In most cases, we may disclose your minor child's PHI to you. In some situations, however, we are permitted or even required by law to deny your access to your minor child's PHI - for example, information about drug use or addiction, certain mental health services, and venereal disease.

• Facility directories: When you are a patient in one of our facilities, we may create a directory that includes your name, room location, and your general condition. This information may be disclosed to a person who asks for you by name. In addition, we may provide your religious affiliation, if any, to clergy. You may object to the use or disclosure of some or all of this information. If you do, we will not disclose it to visitors or other members of the public.

• Research: Kaiser Permanente engages in extensive and important health research. Some of our research may involve medical procedures and some is limited to collection and analysis of health data. Research of all kinds may involve the use or disclosure of your PHI. Your PHI can generally be used or disclosed without your permission if an Institutional Review Board (IRB) approves such use or disclosure. An IRB is a committee that is re­spon­si­ble, under federal law, for reviewing and approving human subjects research to protect the safety of patients and confidentiality of PHI.

• Organ donation: We may use or disclose PHI to organ procurement organ­i­za­tions to assist with organ, eye or other tissue donations.

• Public health activities: Public health activities cover many functions performed or authorized by government agencies to promote and protect the public's health and may require us to disclose your PHI.
  • For example, we may disclose your PHI as part of our obligation to report to public health authorities certain diseases, injuries, conditions, and vital events such as births or abortions. Sometimes we may disclose your PHI to someone you may have exposed to a communicable disease or who may otherwise be at risk of getting or spreading the disease.

  • The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is re­spon­si­ble for tracking and monitoring certain medical products, such as pacemakers and hip replacements, to identify product problems and failures and injuries they may have caused. If you have received one of these products, we may use and disclose your PHI to the FDA or other authorized persons or organ­i­za­tions, such as the maker of the product.

  • We may use and disclose your PHI as necessary to comply with federal and state laws that govern workplace safety.

• Health oversight: As health care providers and health plans, we are subject to oversight conducted by federal and state agencies. These agencies may conduct audits of our operations and activities and in that process, they may review your PHI.

• Disclosures to your employer or your employee organ­i­za­tion: If you are enrolled in Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Colorado through your employer or an employee organ­i­za­tion, we may share certain PHI with them without your authorization, but only when allowed by law. For example, we may disclose your PHI for a workers' com­pen­sa­tion claim or to determine whether you are enrolled in the plan or whether premiums have been paid on your behalf. For other purposes, such as for inquiries by your employer or employee organ­i­za­tion on your behalf, we will obtain your authorization when necessary under applicable law.

• Workers' com­pen­sa­tion: In order to comply with workers' com­pen­sa­tion laws, we may use and disclose your PHI. For example, we may communicate your medical information regarding a work-related injury or illness to claims administrators, insurance carriers, and others re­spon­si­ble for evaluating your claim for workers' com­pen­sa­tion benefits.

• Military activity and national security: We may sometimes use or disclose the PHI of armed forces personnel to the applicable military authorities when they believe it is necessary to properly carry out military missions. We may also disclose your PHI to authorized federal officials as necessary for national security and intelligence activities or for protection of the President and other government officials and dignitaries.

• Marketing: Kaiser Permanente may use and, in some instances, disclose your PHI to contact you about benefits, services or supplies that we can offer you in addition to your KP coverage.

• Fundraising: We may use or disclose PHI to contact you to raise funds for our organ­i­za­tion.

• Required by law: In some circumstances federal or state law requires that we disclose your PHI to others. For example, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services may review our compliance efforts, which may include seeing your PHI.

• Lawsuits and other legal disputes: We may use and disclose PHI in responding to a court or administrative order, a subpoena, or a discovery request. We may also use and disclose PHI to the extent permitted by law without your authorization, for example, to defend a lawsuit or arbitration.

• Law enforce­ment: We may disclose PHI to authorized officials for law enforce­ment purposes, for example, to respond to a search warrant, report a crime on our premises, investigate fraud, or help identify or locate someone.

• Serious threat to health or safety: We may use and disclose your PHI if we believe it is necessary to avoid a serious threat to your health or safety or to someone else's.

• Abuse or neglect: By law, we may disclose PHI to the appropriate authority to report suspected child abuse or neglect or to identify suspected victims of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence.

• Coroners and funeral directors: We may disclose PHI to a coroner or medical examiner to permit identification of a body, determine cause of death, or for other official duties. We may also disclose PHI to funeral directors.

• Inmates: Under the federal law that requires us to give you this notice, inmates do not have the same rights to control their PHI as other indi­vid­uals. If you are an inmate of a correctional institution or in the custody of a law enforce­ment official, we may disclose your PHI to the correctional institution or the law enforce­ment official for certain purposes, for example, to protect your health or safety or someone else's.

• Denver/Boulder area: 1-888-313-2329 or (303) 338-3820 TTY/TDD
• Colorado Springs area: 1-888-313-2329 or (719) 867-2132 TTY/TDD

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