NOTICE OF PRIVACY POLICY

Protecting your personal information and what happens to that information is a real concern to us. At Connecticut Orthopaedic Specialists (COS), we are committed to protecting your privacy. Please read on for more details about our privacy policy

• As a patient of COS, all uses or disclosures to other parties not for purposes of treatment, payment, or healthcare operations require a signed authorization to release the information. Any other uses or disclosures will be changed to remove all individually identifiable information

• It may be necessary to contact patients by mail or phone to provide appointment reminders or obtain information necessary for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations. It is the policy of COS to allow patients to request how we should contact them.

• It is the policy of COS that every patient will be provided a Notice of Use and Disclosure and that an acknowledgement will be obtained for every patient unless it is unreasonable to obtain this acknowledgement.

• It is the policy of COS to allow patients to request, in writing, a restriction on the use and disclosure of protected health information to family members or close friends involved in the patient's treatment. Decisions to grant or deny a request to restrict the use and disclosure of such information will be made by the patient's doctor based on whether the use and disclosure of the information is pertinent to the patient's treatment.

• It is the policy of COS to provide patients and patient representatives, upon written request, with an accounting of all disclosures of personal health information made after April 14,2003, that were not made for the following purposes:
  • To carry out treatment, payment or healthcare operations
  • To fulfill the request of the patient or the patient's personal representative
  • To act on authorization from the patient
  • To share with others involved in the patient's care
  • To comply with national security purposes
  • To comply with correctional facility requirements

• COS will maintain records of deceased individuals for a period of seven years from their last day of treatment. The practice will continue to protect the privacy of the deceased individual during this time by preventing misuse or disclosure of protected health information..

• It is the policy of Connecticut Orthopaedic Specialists (COS) to provide patients and patient representatives with access to their protected health information upon written request

• COS will provide for the right of an individual to amend his/her protected health information or record for as long as that record is maintained by the practice.
   
• Unless it is unreasonable, as a result of circumstances beyond control of the practice, COS will only contract with business associates that agree to be bound by the privacy requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Connecticut confidentiality and privacy laws.