Privacy Policies and Health Information Practices

Client/Patient Rights Policy

In accordance with California state licensing and certification requirements, and applicable federal law and national accreditation standards, New Dawn Recovery Centers will accord each participant receiving services the following rights which include, but are not limited to:

The Right…

1. To confidentiality as provided for in Title 42, Code of Federal Regulations, Sections 2.1 through 2.67-1; Title 45, Parts 160 & 164, and as required by HIPAA.
2. To be accorded dignity in contact with staff.
3. To be accorded a safe, healthful and comfortable accommodations to meet his or her needs..
4. To be free from verbal, emotional, physical abuse, and sexual behavior or abuse.
5. To be informed by the program licensee or agent of the provisions of law regarding complaints including, but not limited to providing the contact information of the California Dept. of Alcohol and Drugs.
6. To be free from discrimination based on: ethnic or gender group identification, religion, age, sex, color or any type of disability.
7. To be accorded access to review of his/her health records, have an opportunity to request a correction to the record, if appropriate; and to receive a copy of the record within 30 days of a written request.
8. To express personal preference regarding case manager, counselor or any other service personnel.
9. To be free to attend religious services or activities of his or her choice provided that these services or activities do not conflict with facility program requirements.

Any grievances regarding the violation of client rights should be directed to the Case Manager and/or facility Program Director.  Additionally, clients may file a complaint with the California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs. An inspection of an alcoholism or drug abuse recovery or treatment facility may be requested in accordance with Title 9, Chapter 4, Section 10544 (c ) of the California Code of Regulations.

 

Nondiscrimination Policy

New Dawn Recovery Centers does not discriminate in the provision of services on the basis of ethnic group identification, religion, age, sex, color or disability, pursuant to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Section 2000d, Title 42, United States Code), the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 794, Title 29, United States Code); the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Section 12132, Title 42, United States Code); and per relevant California State regulations.

 

Accessibility Policy

New Dawn Recovery Centers programs operate in accordance with an Accessibility policy and plan that is reviewed and revised at least annually in accordance with state, federal, and CARF accreditation guidelines. Our Accessibility policy and plan is to remove as many barriers to treatment as possible, such as:

• Attitudinal
• Geographical
• Architectural
• Cultural
• Environmental
• Financial
• Communication
• Transportation
• Any other barriers, as these become identified.

Reasonable accommodations are provided, as needed, to enable qualified individuals access to a program’s operations and services. For more information, contact the particular facility’s intake department.

 

Insurance Billing and Patient Responsibility

New Dawn will bill your insurance or third party payer as a courtesy to you and will make every effort to obtain payment.  Only after reasonable attempts to collect from the insurance payer have been exhausted will unpaid charges be billed to the patient.  While it can sometimes take months to exhaust all reasonable avenues of appeal, no interest will accrue on unpaid insurance charges.  Once unpaid insurance charges have been billed to the client, any unpaid amounts may be turned over to a collection agency at thirty (30) days past due, and all legal and collection related fees will be charged to the patient.

All anticipated uninsured/non-covered charges and projected co-payments are expected to be paid upon admission. New Dawn will make every effort to acquire accurate insurance benefits and eligibility information, however statements made by the Intake Department or other New Dawn Recovery Centers staff with regards to copay, coinsurance, deductible amounts, eligibility, coverage(s), benefit limitations or exclusions and other health insurance or third party payer related information are offered only as an estimate of the patient or guarantor’s financial responsibility. It is ultimately the patient’s responsibility to know the extent of their health insurance eligibility and coverage. The patient and/or guarantor is responsible to pay for all non-covered services, which includes any portion of the billed charges that are not paid by the insurance payer.

 

Web Site Visitor Information Practices Policy

When you browse through any website, certain information about your visit can be collected. We automatically collect and store the following information:

• Name of the domain you use to access the Internet. (for example, aol.com, if you are using an America Online account)
• Address of the website you came from when you came to visit.
• Date and time of your visit.
• Web site pages you visited.
• Keyword(s) used to access our site.

We use this information for statistical purposes and to help us make our site more useful to visitors. Unless it is specifically stated otherwise, no additional information will be collected about you.

Personally Communicated Information:
Any information you voluntarily provide to New Dawn, either through an e-mail message, contact form, survey, etc., is considered confidential, and will only be used internally to the extent necessary.

Disclosure:
This organization does not disclose, give, sell or transfer any personal information about our visitors, unless legally required for law enforcement or by statute.

 

Confidentiality & Security Policy

New Dawn Recovery Centers and its programs have a primary policy and responsibility to strictly adhere to protecting the security and confidentiality of its client’s personal health information. New Dawn Recovery Centers and its employees will not release any information without a specified written consent from the client/patient and/or only if such disclosure is legally permitted in accordance with current federal laws, including:

• 42 CFR Part 2
• 45 CFR Parts 160 and 164

Each staff member is dedicated to upholding these standards in all verbal, written or electronically transmitted communications and records. All New Dawn Recovery Center staff, clients (patients), family members, and visitors sign a confidentiality agreement to safeguard patient/client identity and other personally protected health information.

 

Notice of Health Information Practices

This notice describes how information about our client/patient may be used and/or disclosed and how this information is accessed. Please review it carefully.
Understanding Your Health Record/Information:
Each time you visit a health care facility, physician, or other healthcare provider, a record of your visit is made. Typically, this record contains information about your health history, symptoms, examination and test results, diagnoses, treatment, and a plan for future care or treatment. This information, often referred to as your patient chart or medical record, serves as a:

• Basis for planning your care and treatment.
• Means of communication among the 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.
• Tool in educating heath professionals.
• Source of personally de-identified data for medical research.
• Basis of de-identified information for public health officials charged with improving the health of the local region or the nation.
• Resource of de-identified data for facility planning and marketing.
• 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:

• Insure its accuracy.
• Better understand who, what, when, where and why others may access your health information, especially in the event that you did not sign a specified authorization to do so.
• Make more informed decisions when authorizing disclosure to others.

Your Health Information Rights:
Although your health record is the physical property of the healthcare practitioner or facility that compiled it, the information belongs to you. You have the right to:

• Request a restriction on certain uses and disclosures of your information as provided by 45 CFR 164.522 and 42 CFR, Chapter 1, Part 2.
• Obtain a paper copy of the notice of information practices upon request.
• Inspect and copy your health record as provided for in 45 CFR 164.524.
• Amend your health record as provided in 45 CFR 164.528.
• Obtain an accounting of disclosures of your health information as provided in 45 CFR 164.528.
• 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 based on a previous authorization.

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 personal health information by alternative means or at alternative locations.

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

 

Notice - Confidentiality of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Patient Records

The confidentiality of alcohol and drug abuse patient records maintained by this program is protected by federal law and regulations (per 42 CFR, Chapter 1, Part 2). Generally, the program may not say to a person outside the program that a patient attends the program, or disclose any information identifying a patient as an alcohol or drug abuser unless:

1. The patient consents in writing.
2. The disclosure is allowed by a court order.
3. The disclosure is made to medical personnel in a medical emergency or to designated and qualified staff for research, audit, or program evaluation.

Federal law and regulations do not protect any information about a crime committed by a patient either at the program or against any person who works for the program or about any threat to commit such a crime.
Federal laws and regulations do not protect any information about suspected child abuse or neglect from being reported under State law to appropriate state or local authorities.

Violation of the federal law and regulations by a program is a crime. Suspected violations may be reported to appropriate authorities in accordance with federal regulations.

 

Individual Right to Access Protected Health Information

The individual patient/client has a right to access, inspect and obtain a copy of his/her protected health information (pursuant to 45 CFR Part 164.524) for as long as that designated record set is maintained by the facility. Access will be accorded within 30 days of the request, except in where legally specified reasons for denial exist. If access is denied for cause, such denial may be reviewed and appealed.
For further HIPAA-relevant Privacy information see the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services (HHS) CMS website.

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, we will post a revised notice to this website.

 

For more knowledge about protected health information or to report a problem:

If have questions and would like additional information, you may contact New Dawn Recovery Centers’ corporate office at 866-969-4300.
If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you can file a complaint with the Department of Health and Human Services/ Office for Civil Rights (HHS/OCR) by email at ocrcomplaint@hhs.gov or by calling the national Office at 202-205-8725 and asking for the OCR Health Information Privacy Complaint Form and/or for the appropriate Regional OCR Office.

However, communications that are sent directly to the Department of HHS/OCR are maintained by them for historical purposes, as required by law. Those communications are archived on a monthly basis, but are also protected by the Privacy Act, which restricts their use while permitting certain disclosures. There will be no retaliation for filing a complaint.