Celtic Healthcare

Notice of Privacy Practices

As Required by the Privacy Regulations Promulgated Pursuant to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA):

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.

Uses and Disclosures Treatment

Your health information may be used by staff members or disclosed to other health care professionals for the purpose of evaluating your health, medical conditions, and providing treatment. For example, health information collected by your homecare nurse or therapist will be available in your medical record to all health professionals who may provide treatment or who may be consulted by staff members or your physician. Other instances where your health information may be used or disclosed for purposes of your treatment include, but are not limited to the following:

  • Communication among our staff members regarding specific treatment approaches, scheduling appointments, case conferencing. For example, your nurse may speak with your physical therapist to appropriately schedule their visits.

  • Communication between our staff members and your physician. For example, your nurse may speak with your physician about any medication changes.

  • Any verbal communications regarding your health information will remain confidential to every extent possible. For example, any verbal communications regarding your health information via telephone, in-person, or via voicemail by our staff in your home or in any other public place, every effort will be made to maintain the confidentiality of your health information so as not to be incidentally overheard by others.

  • Any written communications regarding your health information will remain confidential to every extent possible. For example, any written documentation containing your health information must be maintained in a secure location at all times including but not limited to: the Celtic Healthcare, Inc. office staff, home offices, staff vehicles, staff clipboards, staff nursing bags, file cabinets.

  • Your Celtic Healthcare, Inc. medical records, written or electronic will be securely maintained in our offices, and any disposal of your written health information will be done by incineration according to the Celtic Healthcare, Inc. medical records’ disposal policy.

  • Any written communications regarding your health information transmitted via facsimile (fax) will remain confidential to every extent possible. For example, any written documentation containing your health information must be preceded by a cover letter with a privacy/confidentiality statement and total number of pages being transmitted. The fax number where the documentation is being transmitted must be verified before transmission, and receipt of fax by the intended party must be verified once transmission is complete.

  • Any written documentation containing your health information sent via the US Postal Service or any other courier service must be sealed in a non-transparent envelope or must be otherwise covered to prevent someone from reading the information.

  • Any written communications regarding your health information transmitted electronically (email) will remain confidential to every extent possible. For example, any electronic communication containing your health information will only be transmitted via the Celtic Healthcare, Inc. secure email service. In addition, every attempt must be made to use your patient identification number in place of your name.

  • Celtic Healthcare, Inc. electronic documentation is a secure application that is transmitted from the staff laptop computers to the Celtic Healthcare, Inc. server and meets the HIPAA regulations for secure transactions. In addition, visiting staff are to maintain a "locked" status of their laptop computers when they are not actively documenting or reviewing their visit notes so as to prevent others from viewing your health information.

  • Electronic documentation is the most secure means of maintaining the privacy and confidentiality of your health information. Celtic Healthcare, Inc. utilizes technology in every way possible to assure that your health information is secure. If you have any questions or concerns about electronic documentation, please contact the Privacy Officer at the Celtic Healthcare office:

    Celtic Healthcare, Inc.

    150 Scharberry Lane

    Mars, PA 16046

    Phone: (724) 742-4360

 

Payment

Your health information may be used to seek payment from your health plan, from other sources of coverage such as an automobile insurer, or from credit card companies that you may use to pay for services. For example, your health plan may request and receive information on dates of service, the services provided, and the medical condition being treated. In addition, if you are a Medicare beneficiary, your O.A.S.I.S. data collected by our staff must be submitted to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services in order for Celtic Healthcare, Inc. to receive payment for our services.

Health Care Operations

Your health information may be used as necessary to support the day-to-day activities and management of Celtic Healthcare, Inc. For example, information on the services you received may be used to support budgeting and financial reporting and/or activities to evaluate and promote quality. Other instances where your health information may be used or disclosed for our daily operations include, but are not limited to the following:

Your O.A.S.I.S. data collected by our staff must be submitted to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services for purposes of outcomes reporting for quality improvement as mandated by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

When receiving referral information to initiate your home healthcare services from a hospital, skilled nursing facility, rehabilitation facility, physician, or any other referral source. Personal Care/Assisted Living Facility Residents. In order for Celtic Healthcare, Inc. to provide you the absolute best healthcare possible, if you are a resident of a Personal Care Home or Assisted Living Facility, we may need to disclose your health information to the Personal Care Home’s Administrator, Director of Wellness, Director of Nursing, or any other staff member who acts directly or indirectly as your caregiver. If you do not want your health information disclosed to a specific staff member or members, you may instruct your Celtic Healthcare, Inc. nurse or therapist or you may contact the Privacy Officer:

Celtic Healthcare, Inc.

150 Scharberry Lane

Mars, PA 16046

Phone: (724) 742-4360

 

Disclosure of Health Information to a Caregiver

In order for Celtic Healthcare, Inc. to provide you the absolute best healthcare possible, we may need to disclose your health information to individuals responsible for your care, including but not limited to: your spouse, sibling, son or daughter, other relative, friend, neighbor, Power of Attorney, or other caregiver. If you do not want your health information disclosed to a specific individual, you, your Power of Attorney, or whomever you may have designated to make decisions on your behalf may provide your Celtic Healthcare, Inc. nurse or therapist with the name of the individual(s) or you may contact the Privacy Officer:

Celtic Healthcare, Inc.

150 Scharberry Lane

Mars, PA 16046

Phone: (724) 742-4360

 

Law Enforcement

Your health information may be disclosed to law enforcement agencies, without your permission, to support government audits and inspections, to facilitate law enforcement investigations, and to comply with government mandated reporting such as audits or surveys by the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

 

Public Health Reporting

Your health information may be disclosed to public health agencies as required by law. For example, we are required to report certain communicable diseases to the Pennsylvania Public Health Department.

 

Other Uses and Disclosures Require Your Authorization

Disclosure of your health information or its use for any purpose other than those listed above requires your specific written authorization. If you change your mind after authorizing a use or disclosure of your information, you may submit a written revocation of the authorization. However, your decision to revoke the authorization will not affect or undo any use or disclosure of information that occurred before you notified us of your decision.

 

Appointment Scheduling

Your health information will be used by our staff to schedule homecare appointments by telephone, facsimile, electronic mail, in writing, or in person. When scheduling appointments, our staff may need to speak with a spouse, loved one, or your caregiver to make the appropriate arrangements or to obtain directions. When speaking with anyone other than you or whomever you may have designated to make decisions on your behalf, our staff will limit the use or disclosure of your health information to the minimum necessary unless you specify otherwise.

 

Information About Treatments

Your health information may be used to send you information on the treatment and management of your medical condition that you may find to be of interest. We may also send you information describing other health-related goods and services that we believe may interest you. Individual Rights You have certain rights under the federal privacy standards. These include:

  • the right to request restrictions on the use and disclosure of your protected health information

  • the right to receive confidential communications concerning your medical condition and treatment

  • the right to inspect and copy your protected health information

  • the right to amend or submit corrections to your protected health information

  • the right to receive an accounting of how and to whom your protected health information has been disclosed

  • the right to receive a printed copy of this notice if it has been received in electronic form

Celtic Healthcare, Inc. Duties

We are required by law to maintain the privacy of your protected health information and to provide you with this notice of privacy practices. We also are required to abide by the privacy policies and practices that are outlined in this notice.

 

Right to Revise Privacy Practices

As permitted by law, we reserve the right to amend or modify our privacy policies and practices. These changes in our policies and practices may be required by changes in federal and state laws and regulations. Whatever the reason for these revisions, we will provide you with a revised notice on your next home health episode of care. The revised policies and practices will be applied to all protected health information that we maintain.

 

Requests to Inspect Protected Health Information

As permitted by federal regulation, we require that requests to inspect or copy protected health information be submitted in writing. You may obtain a form to request access to your records by contacting the Privacy Officer:

Celtic Healthcare, Inc.

150 Scharberry Lane

Mars, PA 16046

Phone: (724) 742-4360

 

Complaints

If you would like to submit a comment or complaint about our privacy practices, you can do so by sending a letter outlining your concerns to:

Privacy Officer

Celtic Healthcare, Inc.

150 Scharberry Lane

Mars, PA 16046

 

If you believe that your privacy rights have been violated, you should call the matter to our attention by sending a letter describing the cause of your concern to the same address. You do have the right to contact the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services if you believe your privacy has been violated.

You will not be penalized or otherwise retaliated against for filing a complaint.

 

Contact Person

The name and address of the person you can contact for further information concerning our privacy practices is:

Privacy Officer

Celtic Healthcare, Inc.

150 Scharberry Lane

Mars, PA 16046

Phone: (724) 742-4360

 

Effective Date

This Notice is effective on or after April 1, 2003.