NOTICE OF HEALTH INFORMATION PRACTICES HIPAA PRIVACY REGULATIONS

PRIVACY POLICY AND PROCEDURE FOR TIMOTHY D. MCGARITY, M.D.

WE ARE COMMITTED TO CONFIDENTIALITY, RESPECT AND QUALITY OF CARE FOR ALL PATIENTS REGARDLESS OF RACE, ETHNICITY, NATIONALITY, RELIGION, SEX, MENTAL OR PHYSICAL DISABILITY, SEXUAL ORIENTATION OR SOURCE OF PAYMENT

1. All patient information is confidential and may not leave the office without the patient’s consent or authorization. Patient charts will be taken to the hospital or other outpatient facility for patient treatment. These charts will be in the care of our staff and not in a public area. Patient authorization is given on Registration form to release minimum necessary information for administering claims for insurance benefits, collecting payment, information for treatment and to referring physicians.
2. Personnel with access to patient information include the following:
   Physician
   Office Manager
   All nurses assisting with patient care
   Transcription & filing
   Insurance & Billing

3. All patient charts will be kept away from public areas so they are not readily available to those who do not need them.
4. Every effort, within reason, will be made to keep patient information confidential when talking on telephone, to other office personnel, and with patient. Reasonable precautions should be taken to minimize inadvertent disclosures to others (such as using lowered voices, talking apart, non use of speaker phones).
   • Health care staff may orally coordinate services at nursing station. Nurses or other health care professionals may discuss a patient’s condition over the phone with the patient, a provider, or a family member.
   • A health care professional may discuss test results with a patient or other provider in a joint treatment area.
   • Sign-in sheets and similar practices are permissible.
   • Calling out patient names in a waiting room is permissible.
5. Patient information may not be transmitted electronically or faxed to a site that is not secure for patient health information. Gateway processes our electronic claims and has verified to be compliant to HIPPA regulations. Faxed material must be marked confidential.
6. All equipment containing patient information may not leave the office with information intact for access by someone else. We will check with the manufacturer on destruction of data before releasing equipment. Floppy disc, CD’s, back-up tapes and hard drives must be broken, destroyed or erased. Paper will be shredded.
7. We will make every effort to assure that our Business Associates comply with the same HIPPA regulations by getting signed agreements from them.
8. The HIPPA Director will be responsible for seeing that privacy procedures are adopted and followed. The privacy policies are subject to change without public notice.
9. The patient’s health record is the physical and legal property of Timothy D. McGarity, M.D. but the information belongs to the patient. The patient may have access to inspect, amend or obtain a copy of their health information. Costs may incur for copies of records, and appointments must be made with the Privacy Officer to inspect, access or amend their health information.
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