NOTICE OF PRIVACY POLICIES FOR P.R.M.A.S.T.

THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY, AND SIGN THE ATTACHED ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF RECEIPT OF PRIVACY NOTICE.

Preserving trust is a core value. P.R.M.A.S.T. recognizes that you expect us to protect the information you provide us and to use it responsibly. We are strongly committed to fulfilling the trust that is the foundation of your expectations. At P.R.M.A.S.T., we are committed to treating and using protected health information about you responsibly. This Notice of Health Information Practices describes the personal information we collect, and how and when we use or disclose that information. It also describes your rights as they relate to your protected health information. This Notice is effective April 14, 2003, and applies to all protected health information as defined by federal and state laws, rules and regulations.

Understanding your Health Record/Information

Each time you visit P.R.M.A.S.T. a record of your visit is made. Typically, this record contains your symptoms, examination and test results, diagnoses, treatment, and a plan for future care or treatment. This information,, often referred to as your health or medical record, serves as a:

• Basis for planning your care and treatment,
• Means of communication among the many health professionals who contribute to your care,
• Legal document describing the care you received,
• Means by which you or a third-party payer can verify that services billed were actually provided,
• A tool in educating health professionals,
• A source of data for medical research,
• A source of information for public health officials charged with improving the health of this state and the nation,
• A tool with which we can assess and continually work to improve the care we render and the outcomes we achieve.

Understanding what is in your record and how your health information is used helps you to: ensure its accuracy, better understand who, what, when, where, and why others may access your health information, and make more informed decisions when authorizing disclosure to others.

Your Health Information Rights

Although your health record is the physical property of P.R.M.A.S.T., the information belongs to you. You have the right to:

• Obtain a paper copy of this notice of information practices upon request,
• Inspect and copy your health record.
• Amend your health record
• Obtain an accounting of disclosures of your health information
• Request communications of your health information by alternative means or alternative locations to ensure confidentiality
• Request a restriction on certain uses and disclosures of you information
• Revoke your authorization to use or disclose health information except to the extent that action has already been taken.

Our Responsibilities

P.R.M.A.S.T. is required to:

• Maintain the privacy of your health information,
• Provide you with this notice as to our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to information we collect and maintain about you,
• Abide by the terms of this notice,
• Notify you if we are unable to agree to a requested restriction, and
• Accommodate reasonable requests you may have to communicate health information by alternative means or at alternative locations.
• We reserve the right to change our practices and to make the new provisions effective for all protected health information we maintain. Should our information practices change significantly, we will mail a revised notice to the address you’ve supplied us, or if you agree, we will email the revised notice to you. We will not use or disclose your health information without your authorization, except as described in this notice. We will also discontinue to use or disclose your health information after we have received a written letter of revocation of the authorization.

Examples of Disclosures for Treatment, Payment, and Health Operations

We will use your health information for treatment.

We will use your health information for payment.

We will use your health information for regular health operations.

Uses and Disclosures Permitted Without Authorization or Opportunity to Object

In disclosing information as specified below, it is our policy to disclose the minimal amount of protected health information as possibly needed to accomplish the intended purpose.

Business associates
Directory
Notification
Communication with family
Health Oversight Activities
Research
Funeral director, Coroner, Medical Examiner
Organ procurement organizations
Marketing
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Workers compensation
Public health
Threat to Health or Safety
Specialized Government Function
Abuse, Neglect, or Domestic Violence
Law enforcement

For More Information or to Report a Problem

If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you can file a complaint with the practice’s Privacy Officer, or with the Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. There will be no retaliation for filing a complaint with either the Privacy Officer or the Office for Civil Rights.

If you wish to complain, please do so in writing to the address listed below, and direct your complaint to the privacy officer. If you require additional information, the Privacy Officer, Sharon Lacey, may also be reached by telephone at 210-692-1181.

Contact Information

Sharon Lacey, Privacy Officer, PRMAST, P O Box 29130, San Antonio, TX 78229

DISCLAIMER NOTICE

TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF USE

Please read the following terms and conditions relating to your use of our website carefully. By using our Website, you agree to these Terms and Conditions of Use ("Terms & Conditions").

1. Privacy and Security

We are committed to protecting your privacy and security. For more information, you should review our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms & Conditions by this reference.

2. Submissions

If, at our request or on your own, you send, email, post or otherwise transmit to us or this Website information, software, photos, video, text, graphics, music, sounds, questions, creative suggestions, messages, comments, feedback, ideas, recipes, notes, drawings, articles, (excluding submissions of Personally Identifiable Information) (collectively, the "Submissions"), such Submissions shall be deemed, and shall remain, our property. Except as provided in our Privacy Policy, none of the Submissions shall be subject to any obligation of confidence on our part, and we shall not be liable for any use or disclosure of any Submissions.

3. Parental or Guardian Permission

The Content on this Website may not be appropriate for children. CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF 13 ARE NOT PERMITTED TO USE THIS WEBSITE. We strongly recommend that children between the ages of 13 and 18 ask for their parent's or guardian's permission before viewing or using our Website.

4. Disclaimers:

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS:

ANY CONTENT AND MATERIAL DOWNLOADED OR OTHERWISE OBTAINED THROUGH THE USE OF THIS WEBSITE IS DONE AT YOUR SOLE RISK AND YOU WILL BE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR LOSS OF DATA THAT RESULTS FROM THE DOWNLOAD OF ANY SUCH PRODUCT, OFFERING, CONTENT OR MATERIAL.

FURTHER, PLEASE NOTE THAT NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION, OBTAINED BY YOU FROM OUR PERSONNEL OR THROUGH THIS WEBSITE SHALL NOTCREATE ANY WARRANTY NOT EXPRESSLY PROVIDED FOR IN THESE TERMS & CONDITIONS.