Under the regulatory authority of the Department of Health and Human Services, High Plains Mental Health Center can use your information for the purposes of Treatment, Payment or Healthcare Operations.
Treatment is defined as the provision, coordination, or management of health care and related services by one or more health care providers. This includes the exchange of information in professional consultation and supervision among members of the High Plains Mental Health Center treatment team (psychiatrists, therapist, case managers, student interns, and volunteers).
Payment is defined as activities undertaken by a health care provider to obtain reimbursement for the provision of health care. This may include sharing of necessary information with High Plains Mental Health Center?s insurance and/or billing department in order to generate insurance claims or send monthly statements. We may also send a bill to you or to a third-party payer, such as a health insurer. The information on or accompanying the bill may include information that identifies you, your diagnosis, or treatment received.
Healthcare operations is defined as carrying out the activities of High Plains Mental Health Center to the extent that these activities are related to covered functions and activities of an organized health care arrangement in which High Plains Mental Health Center participates. This includes Quality Assurance activities (peer review); qualifications of health care professionals; underwriting and premium rating; medical review, legal services and auditing functions; business planning and development; business management and general administrative activities (i.e. customer service).
High Plains Mental Health Center may contact you or your parent/guardian by phone or mail in the following situations: 1) to provide appointment reminders and other information regarding services; 2) to request additional information and/or signatures in order to facilitate payment of your account; 3) to request additional information and/or signatures in order to process requests for information from outside agencies; 4) to request feedback regarding your satisfaction with our services following the receipt of such services.
High Plains Mental Health Center may provide information through contracts with Business Associates. This information may be disclosed to the business associate so that they can perform the function(s) that we have contracted with them to do. Examples of business associates would be pharmacies, laboratories, interpreters, and High Plains Mental Health Center?s attorneys and accountants. Our business associates are required to appropriately safeguard your information.
Under the privacy standards, we must disclose your health information to the Department of Health and Human Services as necessary to determine our compliance with those standards. High Plains Mental Health Center reserves the right to change the terms of its Notice of Information and Privacy Practices, and to make the new notice provisions effective for all protected health information that it maintains. Revised notices will be made available to patients at their first service following implementation of the revision.
If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may complain to High Plains Mental Health Center and / or the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Complaints should be made in writing to the Director of Quality and Risk Management, 208 East 7th Street, Hays, Kansas 67601, or to the Secretary of Health and Human Services at 200 Independence Avenue SW, Washington D.C. 20201. The complaint should name the agency and / or person that is the subject of the complaint and describe the acts or omissions believed to be in violation of the privacy requirements. The complaints should be filed within 180 days of when the complainant knew or should have known that the act or omission occurred. Individuals will not be retaliated against for filing such a complaint.
For further information regarding this Notice of Information and Privacy Practices, contact the Medical Records Manager or the Director of Quality and Risk Management at (785) 628-2871
Revised April 2007