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.

If you have any questions about this Notice please contact our Privacy Contact, Joe Gregorio.

This Notice of Privacy Practices describes how we may use and disclose your protected health information to carry out treatment, payment or health care operations and for other purposes that are permitted or required by law. It also describes your rights to access and control of your protected health information. "Protected health information" is information about you, including demographic information, that may identify you and that relates to your past, present or future physical or mental health or condition and related health care services.

We are required to abide by the terms of this Notice of Privacy Practices. We may, however, change the terms of our notice at any time. The new notice will be effective for all protected health information that we are maintaining at that time. Upon your request, we will provide you with a revised Notice of Privacy Practices by U.S. Mail or you may request one at any time during business hours in our business office.

Understanding Your Health Record/Information

Whenever you receive services from a healthcare provider, a record of your visit is made. Typically, this record contains your symptoms, diagnosis, examination and test results, 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 payor can verify that services billed were actually provided

• A tool in educating health professionals

• Source of data for medical research

• Source of information for public health officials charged with improving the health of the nation

• Source of data for facility planning and marketing

• A tool with which we can access and continually work to improve the care we render and the outcomes we achieve

Also, understanding what is in your medical records 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

• Make more informed decisions when authorizing disclosure to others

If you believe your privacy rights have been violated

You can file a complaint with our Privacy Contact or with the Secretary of Health and Human Services. There will be no retaliation for filing a complaint.

You may contact our Privacy Contact, Joe Gregorio for further information about the complaint process at (541) 469-7911.

Your Health Information Rights

Although your health record is the physical property of the healthcare provider, practitioner or facility that complied it, the information belongs to you. You have the right to:

• Request a restriction on certain uses and disclosures of your information

• Obtain a paper copy of the notice of information practices upon request

• Inspect and obtain a copy of your health record

• Amend your health record

• Obtain an account of disclosures of your health information

• Request communications of your health information by alternative means or at alternative locations

• Revoke your authorization to use or disclose health information except to the extent that action has already been taken

Our Responsibilities

This organization is required to:

• Maintain the privacy of your health information

• Provide you with a 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

• Accommodate reasonable requests you may have to communicate health information by alternative means or alternative locations

We will not use or disclose your health information without your authorization, except as described in this notice.

Examples of Disclosures for Treatment, Payment and Health Operations

We will use your health information for treatment
For example: Information obtained by a practitioner or other member of your healthcare team will be recorded in your record and used to determine the course of treatment that should work best for you. We may provide your physician or a subsequent healthcare provider with copies of various reports that should assist him or her in treating you.

We will use your health information for payment
For example: A bill may be sent to you or a third-party payor. The information on or accompanying the bill may include information that identifies you, as well as your diagnosis, procedures, and supplies used.

We will use your health information for regular health operations
For example: Members of our quality improvement team may use information in your health record to assess the care and outcomes in your case and others like it. This information will then be used in an effort to continually improve the quality and effectiveness of the healthcare and service we provide.

Business associates: There are some services provided in our organization through contacts with business associates. Examples include our billing service and copy service we use when making copies of your health record. When these services are contracted, we may disclose your health information to our business associate so that they can perform the job we've asked them to do and bill you or your third-party payor for services rendered. To protect your health information, however, we require the business associate to appropriately safeguard your information.

Notification: We may use or disclose information to notify or assist in notifying a family member, personal representative, or another person responsible for your care, your location, and general condition.

Communication with family: Health professionals, using their best judgment, may disclose to a family member, other relative, close personal friend, or any other person you identify, health information relevant to that person's involvement in your care or payment related to your care.

Research: We may disclose information to researchers when their research has been approved by an institutional review board that has reviewed research proposal and established protocols to ensure the privacy of your health information.

Funeral directors: We may disclose health information to funeral directors consistent with applicable law to carry out their duties.

Organ procurement organizations: Consistent with applicable law, we may disclose health information to organ procurement organizations or other entities engaged in the procurement, banking, or transplantation of organs for the purpose of tissue donation and transplant.

Marketing: We may contact you to provide appointment reminders or information about treatment alternatives or other health-related benefits and services that may be of interest to you.

Fund raising: We may contact you as part of a fund-raising effort.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA): We may disclose to the FDA health information relative to adverse events with respect to food, supplements, product and product defects, or post marketing surveillance information to enable product recalls, repairs, or replacement.

Workers compensation: We may disclose health information to the extent authorized by and to the extent necessary to comply with laws relating to workers compensation or other similar programs established by law.

Public health: As required by law, we may disclose your health information to public health or legal authorities charged with preventing or controlling disease, injury, or disability.

Correctional institutions: Should you be an inmate of a correctional institution, we may disclose to the institution or agents thereof health information necessary for your health and safety of other individuals.

Law enforcement: We may disclose health information for law enforcement purposes as required by law or in response to a valid subpoena.

Federal law makes provision for your health information to be released to an appropriate health oversight agency, public health authority or attorney, provided that a work force member or business associate believes in good faith that we have engaged in unlawful conduct or have otherwise violated the terms of this Notice of Privacy Practices.