How does The Walker Center use my information?
We understand that medical information about you and your health is personal. We are required by law to maintain the privacy of your ‘’Protected Health Information” and to provide notice of our privacy practices for your review. “Protected Health Information” is information that may identify you, that is transmitted electronically or is maintained electronically or in any other form or medium, and that relates to your past, present or future physical or mental health or condition, related health care services or payment for your health care services. To read the full privacy notice and understand how we use your information, read more below.
Privacy Policy
Walker Center Notice of Privacy Practices
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. (Updated 4/22)
The Walker Center understands that medical information about you and your health is personal. We are required by law to maintain the privacy of your ‘’Protected Health Information” and to provide notice of our privacy practices for your review. “Protected Health Information” is information that may identify you, that is transmitted electronically or is maintained electronically or in any other form or medium, and that relates to your past, present or future physical or mental health or condition, related health care services or payment for your health care services.
This Notice of Privacy Practices describes how we use and disclose Protected Health Information about you that we receive, including, for example, with whom this information may be shared and whether your written authorization will be required for a particular use of disclosure. This notice also describes certain rights that you will have in our Protected Health Information. If the practices described in this notice meet your expectations, there is nothing you need to do. If you have any questions about this notice, please contact our Director of Clinical Services and Performance at: help@thewalkercenter.org or call 208-934-8461 and ask to speak to the Director of Clinical Services and Performance or by mail at Walker Center Attn: Director of Clinical Services and Performance, 605 11th Ave E, Gooding, Idaho 83330.
The Walker Center will provide the privacy notice to the individual no later than the date of first service delivery and, except in an emergency treatment situation, make a good faith effort to obtain the individual’s written acknowledgment of receipt of the notice. The Walker Center will post and make available this privacy notice on The Walker Center’s website and social media pages. The Walker Center will send copy of this privacy notice to any person or organization who may ask for it. If an individual wishes to complain to the Walker Center about this privacy notice, the rights of the individual, or how to exercise their rights (like to inspect, copy, change, or remove their Protected Health Information), they may contact the Director of Clinical Services and Performance at help@thewalkercenter.org or call 208-934-8461 and ask to speak to the Director of Clinical Services and Performance, or by mail at The Walker Center Attn: Director of Clinical Services and Performance, 605 11th Ave E, Gooding, Idaho 83330.
Confidentiality of Substance Abuse Records
The Walker Center is required by law to maintain the privacy and confidentiality of information about your health, health care, and payment for services related to your health. Confidentiality of your substance abuse records maintained by The Walker Center complies with 42 CFR Part 2 - Confidentiality of Substance Use Disorder Patient Records per federal regulation if you are applying for or receiving services (including diagnosis or treatment, or referral) for substance use disorder. In addition, The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act ("HIPAA") Privacy Regulations (45 CFR Parts 160 and 164), also protects your health information.
YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING YOUR PROTECTED HEALTH INFORMATION:
You have a right to ask to restrict what is disclosed to your health plan provider. At your request we will not disclose Protected Health Information to your health plan if the disclosure is for payment of a health care item for service. You can request that any service that you paid out of pocket for not be disclosed to your health plan. While we consider these requests, we are not required to do so, however you will be notified of the decision. Most health care plans have a certain criterion that you are to meet to have the insurance cover the service or level of care. Certain information is helpful to ensure your coverage and if restricted, it could result in the health care plan not covering your needed care.
You have a right to inspect or copy your health information, under limited circumstances we may deny you access to a portion of your records. If you are in services, please talk to your counselor if you are seeking copies of your electronic health records. If no longer receiving services, please contact Medical Records Department 208-934-8461.
You have the right to request to amend your records maintained in your clinical file or billing record. Under certain circumstance, The Walker Center may deny your request and will notify you of this denial as provided in HIPAA regulation.
You have a right to receive notification of breach of confidentiality. You will be notified if it has been determined that a breach of confidentiality has occurred. Quality Assurance Committee will run a risk analysis of any reported breach of confidentiality to determine if records were compromised and address any actions to reduce any further risks.
You have a right to file a complaint with The Walker Center as already noted, as well as with the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) who is our accreditation organization. If your treatment is funded through Medicaid, you can file a complaint with Optum Idaho at 322 E Front Street, Suite 400, Boise, Idaho 83702. You may also contact the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.
You have right to request how we will communicate with you, whether with phone numbers, addresses you provide or email addresses.
Use and Disclosure of Information
You would need to consent in writing on a form that specifically meets the requirements of laws and regulations that apply to authorize the release of your Protected Health Information. You may revoke your authorization (hereafter called “release of information”) except to the extent that we have already acted upon the authorization. If you are currently receiving care and wish to revoke your release of information, contact your counselor. After you are discharged, you will need to contact the medical records department. There are some exceptions and special rules that allow for uses and disclosures without your authorization or consent to release information.
The Walker Center will need to obtain a written release of information to use or disclose your Protected Health Information to an employer, or the Social Security Administration. To obtain a release of information form, please contact our medical records department 208-934-8461.
Uses and Disclosures for Treatment, Payment, Health Care Operations and Related Purposes
There are circumstances where your written authorization is not needed for use or disclosure of your Protected Health Information, including the following:
Payment: We will use and disclose your Protected Health Information to obtain payment for services provided by The Walker Center. This may include, for example, billing, claims management, and collection activities. It also may also include activities that your health insurance plan may undertake before approving or paying for the health care services, we recommend for you, such as making a determination of eligibility or coverage for insurance benefits, reviewing services provided to you for medical necessity and undertaking utilization review activities. Additionally, we may disclose your Protected Health Information to health care clearinghouse for their payment activities.
Health Care Operations: We will also use and disclose, your Protected Health Information for purposes related to The Walker Center’s health care operations. This may include, for example, activities related to quality assessment and improvement, case management and care coordination, evaluation and training of practitioners and who provide your health care, accreditation, certification, licensing and credentialing, legal services and auditing functions such as fraud and abuse detection and compliance programs.
Appointments: We may call you by name in the waiting room when we are ready to see you. We may also use your Protected Health Information to contact you and remind you of your appointment or for admission information.
Information about Treatment Options and Fundraising: We may use or disclose your Protected Health Information to provide you with information about treatment alternatives or other health-related services that may be of interest to you. We may also use or disclose your demographic information and the dates that you received treatment, as necessary, to contact you for fundraising activities supported by The Walker Center. We may also use or disclose your demographic information to provide you with our newsletter, notify you of alumni activities, or contact you for outcome studies. If you do want to receive these materials, please contact the Director of Clinical Services and Performance and request that they not be sent to you.
Uses and Disclosures Without Authorization or an Opportunity to Object
In other circumstances, we may need to use or disclose your Protected Health Information without obtaining your written authorization or providing you an opportunity to object. These circumstances include the following:
Required by Law: We may use or disclose your Protected Health Information if required by law to do so. For example, we may disclose your Protected Health Information to an authorized governmental agency if we believe that you have been a victim of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence. We also may disclose Protected Health Information in response to an order of a court or administrative tribunal (to the extent such disclosure is expressly authorized by the order) or in certain conditions we will respond to a subpoena but will only disclose Protected Health Information with a court order, in response to a discovery request or other lawful purposes, such as where your Protected Health Information is requested by legal process, or for identification and location purposes, or for a circumstance pertaining to crime victims, suspicion that a death has occurred as a result of criminal conduct, a crime that may have occurred on The Walker Center’s premises, or a medical emergency where a crime may have occurred.
Medical Emergencies. We may disclose your protected health information to medical personnel to the extent necessary to meet a bona fide medical emergency (as defined by 42 CFR Part 2) this information might include HIV status, if applicable.
Minors. We may disclose to a parent or guardian or another person authorized under state law to act on behalf of a minor, those facts about a minor which are relevant to reducing a threat to the life or physical wellbeing of the minor or any other individual, if the program director judges that the minor applicant lacks capacity to make a rational decision and the minor’s situation poses a substantial threat to the life or physical well-being of the minor or any other individual which may be reduced by communicating relevant facts to such person.
Public Health: We may disclose your Protected Health Information for public health purposes to a public health authority permitted by law to collect or receive the information. The disclosure may be made to control disease, injury, or disability, or to address suspected elderly or child abuse or neglect. We also may disclose your Protected Health Information to a company required by the Food and Drug Administration to track and monitor products. In addition, we may disclose your Protected Health Information to a person who may have been exposed to a communicable disease or who may otherwise be at risk of contracting or spreading the disease or condition.
Workplace Illness or Injury: We may disclose your Protected Health Information to comply with workplace illness and injury laws, including obligations for workplace medical surveillance and worker’s compensation laws.
· Health Oversight: We may disclose your Protected Health Information to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law, such as audits, investigations, inspections, and licensure proceedings. We may use or disclose your protected health information for the purposes of health care operations that include internal administration and planning and various activities that improve the quality and effectiveness of care. For example, we may use information about your care to evaluate the quality and competence of our clinical staff. We may disclose information to qualified personnel for outcome evaluation, management audits, financial audits, or program evaluation; however, such personnel may not identify, directly or indirectly, any individual patient in any report of such audit or evaluation, or otherwise disclose patient identities in any manner. We may disclose your information as needed within Walker Center to resolve any complaints or issues arising regarding your care. We may also disclose your protected health information to an agent or agency which provides services to under a qualified service organization agreement and/or business associate agreement, in which they agree to abide by applicable federal law and related regulations (42 CFR Part 2 and HIPAA).
Coroners and Medical Examiners: Protected Health Information may be disclosed to a coroner, medical examiner, or funeral director to permit them to carry out duties authorized by law. Protected Health Information also may be disclosed in reasonable anticipation of death, or for cadaveric organ, eye, or tissue donation purposes.
Treatment. We may use or disclose your Protected Health Information for treatment purposes. Treatment includes diagnosis, treatment, and other services, including discharge planning. For example, counselors may disclose your health information to each other to coordinate individual and group therapy sessions for your treatment or address continued care needs.
Duty to Warn. Where the program learns that a patient has made a specific threat of serious physical harm to another specific person or the public, and disclosure is otherwise required under statute and/or common law, the program will carefully consider appropriate options that would permit disclosure.
Research: In certain circumstances, we may disclose your Protected Health Information to researchers, subject to legal protections being in place to protect your privacy. The Walker Center may use or disclose Protected Health Information for research purposes either with a written authorization or without a written authorization if the information is limited in accordance the “Limited Date Set” requirements of HIPAA, or if an Institutional Review Board of Privacy Board authorizes a waiver of the authorization requirement of for certain limited research purpose as specified by HIPAA.
De-Identification: The Walker Center may use or disclose Protected Health Information that is de-identified in accordance the requirements of HIPAA.
Judicial: We may disclose your Protected Health Information in response to a court order that meets the requirements of federal regulations, 42 CFR Part 2 concerning Confidentiality of Substance Use Disorder Patient Records. Please take note that if your records are not actually “patient records” within the meaning of 42 CFR Part 2 (e.g., if your records are created as a result of your participation in the family program or another non-treatment setting), your records may not be subject to the protections of 42 CFR Part 2.
Authorized representative: Expanded allowable disclosure to your legally authorized representative. We may disclose your Protected Health Information to a person appointed by a court to represent or administer your interests. Even after death your Protected Health Information cannot be released with a verbal request by family.
