PRIVACY POLICY
Web Site Privacy Policy
Precision Analytical Inc. is committed to protecting the privacy of your personal and health information while providing valuable and timely education to the medical community and the public about how to achieve optimal health and well-being.
Precision Analytical Inc. is the sole owner of the information collected on this site. We will not sell, share or rent this information to others in ways different from what is disclosed in this statement. This site contains links to other sites: Precision Analytical Inc. is not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of such websites.
Personal Information Collected
To access specific areas of the website, you may be required to give contact information such as your email address, as well as other personal information. We also may require that you establish a username and password. We may collect information that you voluntarily provide to us through questionnaires or surveys.
To provide better service, Precision Analytical Inc. may use an internet tool called a "cookie." A cookie is a piece of data stored on your computer's hard drive. We may use cookies to tell us that you have visited our site before and retrieve certain information previously provided by you. We may also use cookies to keep track of information about your current site visit that will be discarded as soon as you close your web browser. This allows us to make navigation through our site simpler for our visitors, and compile statistics that we can use to improve our site. Usage of a cookie is in no way linked to any personally identifiable information while on our site.
How Your Information May be Used
Precision Analytical Inc. may use your personal information to provide you with the services or products that you request, to respond to your questions about our services, billing or use of our website, or to evaluate our services and products and to conduct customer surveys. With your consent, Precision Analytical Inc. may use your information to send additional information that may be of interest to you. Precision Analytical Inc. may send email to any address we obtain, once, to obtain this consent. You may elect at any time to discontinue receiving any promotional emails and materials at any time.
Security
When you submit sensitive information via the website, your information is protected both online and off- line. Any website area where patient or customer information is displayed is secured by encryption-protected passwords, and transmission of sensitive information is protected using SSL encryption.
Your personal information is also restricted in our workplace. Only Precision Analytical Inc. employees who need the information to perform a specific task have access to personally identifiable information. Our employees are trained on our security and privacy practices, and our servers that contain personally identifiable information are kept in a secure environment.
Notification of Changes
Precision Analytical Inc. will change and update this policy whenever needed, so please check the policy often. We will identify that the policy has changed by changing the effective date at the bottom of this page. If at any point Precision Analytical Inc. decides to use personally identifiable information in a manner different from that stated at the time it was collected, we will notify users via an email. Users will have a choice as to whether we use their information in a different manner.
Notice of Privacy Practices
THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW YOUR PERSONAL MEDICAL INFORMATION MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED, AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW CAREFULLY.
Precision Analytical Inc. is committed to protecting the privacy of your identifiable health information. This information is known as “protected health information” or “PHI.” PHI includes laboratory test orders and test results, as well as invoices for the healthcare services we provide.
Our Responsibilities
Precision Analytical Inc. is required by law to maintain the privacy of your PHI. We are also required to provide you with this Notice of our legal duties and privacy practices upon request. It describes our legal duties, privacy practices and your patient rights as determined by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). We are required to follow the terms of this Notice currently in effect. We are required to notify affected individuals in the event of a breach involving unsecured protected health information. PHI is stored electronically and is subject to electronic disclosure.
How We May Use or Disclose Your Health Information
We use your PHI for treatment, payment, healthcare operations purposes and for other purposes permitted or required by law. Not every use or disclosure is listed in this Notice, but all Precision Analytical Inc. uses, or disclosures of your health information will fall into one of the categories listed below.
We require your written authorization to use or disclose your health information for any purpose not covered by one of the categories below. Subject to compliance with limited exceptions, we will not use or disclose your PHI for marketing purposes or sell your PHI, unless you have signed an authorization. You may revoke any authorization you sign at any time. If you revoke your authorization, we will no longer use or disclose your health information for the reasons stated in your authorization, except to the extent we have already acted based on your authorization.
The law permits us to use and disclose your health information for the following purposes:
Treatment
Precision Analytical Inc. provides laboratory testing for physicians and other healthcare professionals, and we use your information in our testing process. We disclose your health information to authorized healthcare professionals who order tests or need access to your test results for treatment purposes. Examples of other treatment related purposes include disclosure to a pathologist to help interpret your test results or use of your information to contact you to obtain another specimen, if necessary.
Payment
Precision Analytical Inc. will use and disclose your PHI for purposes of billing and payment. For example, if your testing is being paid for by another person ( i.e., parent, spouse, domestic partner or a former spouse), we may also send invoices to the subscriber whose policy covers your health services. When you pay your healthcare practitioner for testing, we will bill your healthcare practitioner.
Healthcare Operations
Precision Analytical Inc. may use and disclose your PHI for activities necessary to support our healthcare operations, such as performing quality checks on our testing, internal audits, arranging for legal services or developing reference ranges for our tests.
Business Associates
We may provide your PHI to other companies or individuals that need the information to provide services to us. These other entities, known as “business associates,” are required to maintain the privacy and security of PHI. For example, we may provide information to companies that assist us with billing of our services. We may also use an outside collection agency to obtain payment, when necessary.
As Required by Law
We may use and disclose your PHI as required by law.
Law Enforcement Activities and Legal Proceedings
We may use and disclose your PHI, if necessary, to prevent or lessen a serious threat to your health and safety, or that of another person. We may also provide PHI to law enforcement officials, for example, in response to a warrant, investigative demand or similar legal process, or for officials to identify or locate a suspect, fugitive, material witness, or missing person. We may also disclose PHI to appropriate agencies if we reasonably believe an individual to be a victim of abuse, neglect or domestic violence.
We may disclose your PHI as required to comply with a court or administrative order. We may disclose your PHI in response to a subpoena, discovery request or other legal process during a judicial or administrative proceeding, but only if efforts have been made to tell you about the request or to obtain an order of protection for the requested information.
Research
We may disclose PHI for research purposes when an Institutional Review Board or privacy board has reviewed the research proposal and established protocols to ensure the privacy of your PHI and determined that the researcher does not need to obtain your authorization prior to using your PHI for research purposes. We may also disclose information about decedents to researchers under certain circumstances.
Other Uses and Disclosures
As permitted by HIPAA, we may disclose your PHI to:
• Public Health Authorities
• The Food and Drug Administration
• Health Oversight Agencies
• Military Command Authorities
• National Security and Intelligence Organizations
• Correctional Institutions
• Organ and Tissue Donation Organizations
• Coroners, Medical Examiners and Funeral Directors
• Workers Compensation Agents
We may also disclose relevant PHI to a family member, friend, or anyone else you designate for that person to be involved in your care, or payment related to your care. We may also disclose PHI to those assisting in disaster relief efforts so that others can be notified about your condition, status and location.
Note Regarding State Law
For all the above purposes, when state law is more restrictive than federal law, we are required to follow the more restrictive state law.
Your Patient Rights
Receive Test Information
You have the right to access your PHI that we have created. If you would like a copy of your results you may either write the request on your requisition form when sending in your samples or call our customer service department. You have the right to receive your results within 30 days of making the request (if your report has already been finalized). Please note that Oregon law requires a 7-day waiting period from the time of the request to the time of release.
Amend Health Information
You may request amendments to your PHI by making a written request. However, we may deny the request in some cases (such as if we determine the PHI is accurate). If we deny your request to change your PHI we will provide you with a written explanation of the reason for the denial and additional information regarding further actions that you may take.
Accounting of Disclosures
You have the right to receive a list of certain disclosures of your PHI made by Precision Analytical Inc. in the past six years from the date of your written request. Under the law, this does not include disclosures made for purposes of treatment, payment, or healthcare operations or certain other purposes.
Request Restrictions
You may request that we agree to restrictions on certain uses and disclosures of your PHI. We are not required to agree to your request, except for requests to limit disclosures to your health plan for purposes of payment or healthcare operations when you have paid us for the item or service covered by the request out-of-pocket and in full and when the uses or disclosures are not required by law.
Request Confidential Communications
You have the right to request that we send your health information by alternative means or to an alternative address, and we will accommodate reasonable requests.
Copy of this Notice
You have the right to obtain a paper copy of this Notice upon request.
How to Exercise Your Rights
You may write or send an email to us with your specific request, including requesting a form to complete to obtain a copy of your test results. Precision Analytical Inc. will consider your request and provide you a response.
Complaints/Questions
If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you have the right to file a complaint with us. You also have the right to file a complaint with the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or Office for Civil Rights. Precision Analytical Inc. will not retaliate against any individual for filing a complaint.
To file a complaint with us, or should you have any questions about this Notice, please call or write to us at the following address and phone number:
Precision Analytical Inc.
Attention: Privacy Officer
3138 NE Rivergate St., Suite 301C
McMinnville, OR 97128
Phone: 503-687-2050, ask for the HIPAA Compliance Officer
Note
We reserve the right to amend the terms of this Notice to reflect changes in our privacy practices, and to make the new terms and practices applicable to all PHI that we maintain about you, including PHI created or received prior to the effective date of the Notice revision. Our Notice is displayed on our website and a copy is available upon request.
