HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices

THIS SECTION OUTLINES HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION THAT YOU SHARE MAY BE UTILIZED BY US AND OUR ASSOCIATES AND DISCLOSED TO RELEVANT PARTIES AND HOW YOU CAN FIND OUT WHAT INFORMATION WE HAVE. PLEASE REVIEW THE CONTENTS CLOSELY:

Each time this Notice of Privacy Practices (“Notice”) refers to “we” or “us,” it refers to SEMASLIM and every health care professional, every single pharmacist who offers health care services, the employees working at our contracted pharmacies and company and independent contractors working for the entities we are associated with. Our company is legally required to maintain the privacy of your protected health information (“PHI”), to abide by the terms and conditions within this Notice that are currently applicable, to provide you with this Notice outlining our legal obligations, duties and privacy obligations regarding your PHI and to alert affected individuals in case of a violation or leak of unsecured PHI.

This Notice outlines exactly how we disclose and make use of your PHI. This Notice also explains your rights regarding your PHI and all the obligations that our team must commit to legally. Our company does possess the right to alter and change this Notice. We will share a copy of the updated and revised Notice online on our website and in our contracted pharmacies in case we make any changes. You can also acquire a copy of this Notice any time you need.

  1. USE AND DISCLOSURE OF YOUR PHI

We require sharing and using your PHI for designing treatment, payment processing and healthcare services. We may also use your PHI for additional reasons that are allowed and/or mandated by law and dependent on your written authorization. The following ways are how we may use and/or disclose your PHI.

Uses that are not mentioned or described in this Notice will require your explicit, written consent and permission that you are free to withdraw at any time through another written notice.

  1. Treatment – We may disclose or use your PHI to deliver your services and products to you. We may also share your PHI with other pharmacy technicians,  healthcare providers, pharmacists, employees working at our contracted pharmacies andcompany and independent contractors whose services you use or those involved in your care. We will share a personal notice that allows you to opt out of all additional treatment communications.
  2. Payment – We will use and disclose your PHI for processing payments for the services we offer you. This includes sharing your PHI to seek clearance and authorization from your health provider or plan and to see whether our services are covered by them.
  3. Health Care Operations – We may use and share your PHI while improving management and administration at our contracted pharmacies.
    For example, we may use it during the following processes: quality assessment and improvement, performance evaluations, and internal audits to monitor compliance.
    In certain cases, we may also use it for business management and other administrative purposes.
  4. Prescription Refill Reminders, AlternativeRecommendations or Health-Related Advantages – We may use and disclose your PHI to inform you regarding prescription refill options or to share any health-related details that could be relevant or appealing to you.
  5. Family or Close Friends – If you do not explicitly opt out of this, we may share your PHI with your family members, friends, or other individuals involved in your treatment and healthcare plan. In case you cannot be physically present or you are not available when deciding whether or not to share your PHI with a family member,
    a relative, or a friend, our team’s expertise and judgment may be necessary to determine if this decision is right for you or not. In case we do decide to share your PHI, we will only share the PHI that pertains to payment or your direct treatment.
  6. Other Permissible and Necessary Uses and Disclosures – We may use your PHI without explicit consent or authorization in the following ways:
  • As legally required of us. However, that will always be done in accordance with relevant, applicable legal requirements and nothing more.
  • For research purposes, after ensuring that all relevant approvals and consent are provided;
  • To prevent a grave threat to safety, security and well-being, on the condition that the information disclosed will help the individual prevent or offset serious injury or death;
  • To a public health authority with the legal rights to this knowledge, or to a foreign government agency working closely with a health authority that is involved in minimizing or containing the disease, tracking deaths, recording negative side-effects of medications or issues with products, alerting the public regarding communicable disease, and identifying misuse or neglect  under specific conditions;
  • To law enforcement to record injuries, oblige with court orders or warrants or other such processes, to locate a suspect, runaway, missing person or a wronged party, or to alert them of criminal activity;
  • To a coroner or medical examiner to carry out legally authorized roles such as identifying a deceased individual or investigating the cause of death;
  • To funeral directors, aligned with any relevant law, as required to conduct their duties;
  • To organ procurement organizations or other channels to facilitate tissue or organ donation and/or transplantation;
  • To a health oversight agency for relevant activities under the law, such as audits and evaluations, and civil, criminal, or administrative investigations, processes or rulings;
  • For judicial or administrative hearings and situations in accordance with a court order, discovery request, subpoena, etc., but only in the situation that there have been consistent requests and attempts made to alert you regarding the request or to acquire an order safeguarding the information  being sought-out;
  • For military and veterans activities (including foreign military personnel) to allow them to complete a military activity successfully while also ascertaining their benefits;
  • For national security and intelligence purposes when carrying out legally permissible intelligence, counter-intelligence and activities related to national security;
  • For the protection of the President and any additional authorized individual, foreign leadership or other relevant individuals;
  • To a correctional institution or law enforcement official in case you are a convict in custody or under investigation; and
  • To the degree where the legal boundaries of workers’ compensation and accidents and injuries that occur at work apply.
  1. YOUR RIGHTS AS OUR PATIENT AND/OR CLIENT

As a client and/or patient of SemaSlim, you have several rights over your PHI. The points below cover the specific rights that you can exercise:

  1. You have the right to control and restrict the way we use and/or disclose your PHI. However, keep in mind that we are not obliged to comply with your requested limitation or restriction (barring financial transactions that are fully out-of-pocket or paid in full). You must present a written request that will specify:(1) whether you want us to limit or fully restrict our use and/or disclosure;
    (2) specifically outline the information and details that you want restricted or limited; and
    (3) the individuals or collectives to him the limitation applies (e.g., parent, sibling, spouse, non-blood relative, friends).

In the situation that we agree to adhere to your request, we will not be limited to disclosing your PHI in the following ways:

(1) sharing it with you after you ask for access or an audit of disclosures;
(2) for legally permitted or required purposes; or
(3) in the face of an emergency.

  1. You possess the right to access confidential correspondence regarding your PHI through alternative methods or locations. For instance, you will be able to list down alternative addresses or contact details apart from your home address, receiving all prescription-related information there. To receive confidential communications through alternative methods or locations, you must submit a formal, written request to our  Privacy Officer and specify where and how you want to receive these details. So long as the request is reasonable, we are happy to fulfill it.
  2. You have the right to access and acquire a record of your PHI, including any electronic records; however, you may not be able to access PHI that is exempted under HIPAA. So long as we maintain digital records of your PHI, we will share your PHI in the format you require. In case we do not possess or have access to your PHI, we will share relevant contact details upon receiving your request. We may charge a cost-based fee for mailing and printing.

Additionally, in specific situations, we may deny access to your PHI, but you can always put in a request to have this decision reviewed or receive a written explanation specifying the reason(s) for the refusal.

  1. You have the right to receive a detailed audit and list of all disclosures of your PHI that we have made, including those by any business associate(s) dating back six (6) years from the date of your request or a smaller time frame based on your request.

We will share a singular request annually without any charge and following that, we may apply a cost-based fee for each request henceforth for accounting of disclosures within a set 12-month period. However, we will inform you of any costs this request will incur, and you will be able to cancel your request accordingly before being charged.

  1. You can also put in a written request to us to amend, correct, update, and complete your PHI so long as we have it in our possession. In the case that we do not possess your PHI, you will be referred to the relevant contact information as we receive your request and respond to the amendment thereafter. However, we also have the right to refuse your request for changes in certain situations, for instance, if the PHI you requested is determined to be accurate and complete or it was not created by our team.

Again, you may file a statement of disagreement in writing, and we will review and rebut if necessary. In the situation this occurs,  you can ensure that this request, our refusal, your statement of disagreement, and our response to rebut that request will all be added to future PHI disclosures.

  1. You have the right to acquire a physical copy of this Notice, even if you’re viewing or receiving it in a digital format. In case you have an electronic copy of this Notice, but you want a paper copy, you can submit a request in writing to the Privacy Officer at the address at the bottom of this Notice.
  2. You have the right to sit out of fundraising efforts, and we’ll ensure that your PHI will not be used for any such activities or shared without prior consent.

III. Additional Information/Questions or Complaints

  1. If you require any additional information about this Notice or you want to exercise any of your rights outlined in this Notice, please reach out to the Privacy Officer at the following address:

SEMASLIM

15805 Biscayne Blvd North Miami, FL 33160

In case you believe that your privacy rights have been violated, you have the right to lodge a formal complaint without retaliation with the Privacy Officer of the pharmacy or with:
Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue SW
Washington D.C. 20201