USE AND DISCLOSURE OF HEALTH INFORMATION

Sunset Healthcare, LLC (“Sunset Healthcare”) may use your information that constitutes protected health information (“health information”) as defined in the Privacy Rule of the Administrative Simplification provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, for purposes of providing you treatment, obtaining payment for your care, and conducting health care operations. We have established policies to guard against unnecessary disclosure of your health information.

THE FOLLOWING IS A SUMMARY OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH, AND PURPOSES FOR WHICH, YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED:

To Provide Treatment

We may use your health information to coordinate care within Sunset Healthcare and with others involved in your care, such as your attending physician and other healthcare professionals who have agreed to assist in coordinating your care. For example, physicians involved in your care will need information about your symptoms to prescribe appropriate medications. We also may disclose your health information to individuals outside of those directly involved in your care including family members, pharmacists, suppliers of medical equipment, or other healthcare professionals.

To Obtain Payment

We may include your health information in invoices to collect payment from third parties for the care you receive from us. For example, we may be required by your health insurer to provide information regarding your healthcare status so that the insurer will reimburse you or us. We also may need to obtain prior approval from your insurer and may need to explain to the insurer your need for home care and the services that will be provided to you.

To Conduct Health Care Operations

We may use and disclose health information to conduct healthcare operations and as necessary to provide quality care to all our patients. Healthcare operations include such activities as:

• Quality assessment and improvement activities.
• Activities designed to improve health or reduce healthcare costs.
• Protocol development, case management, and care coordination.
• Contacting healthcare providers and patients with information about treatment alternatives and other related functions that do not include treatment.
• Professional review and performance evaluation.
• Training programs include those in which students, trainees, or practitioners in health care learn under supervision.
• Training on non-healthcare professionals.
• Accreditation, certification, licensing, or credentialing activities.
• Review and auditing, including compliance reviews, medical reviews, legal services, and compliance programs.
• Business planning and development including cost management and planning-related analysis and formulary development.
• Business management and general administrative activities.
• Fundraising for the benefit of Sunset Healthcare.

For example, we may use your health information to evaluate our staff performance, combine your health information with other patients in evaluating how to more effectively serve all of our patients, or disclose your health information to our staff and contracted personnel for training purposes.

For Participation in A Health Information Exchange

We may access and share your health information electronically with other healthcare providers involved in your care through Sunset Healthcare’s participation in a health information exchange. The purpose of this exchange of information is to support the delivery of safer and better-coordinated patient care. Participation in the information exchange is voluntary. For more information regarding your rights and our participation in a health information exchange, please see our website.

For Fundraising Activities

We may use information about you including your name, address, phone number, and the dates you received care to contact you to raise money for the benefit of Sunset Healthcare and its operations. We may also release this information to a related foundation. If you do not want us to contact you for fundraising activities, notify our Privacy Officer at compliance@sunsethealth.com and indicate that you do not wish to be contacted.

For Appointment Reminders

We may use and disclose your health information to contact you as a reminder that you have an appointment for a home visit or a discussion of treatment alternatives. We may use and disclose your health information to tell you, via newsletters, mailings, or other means, about or recommend possible treatment options or other health-related benefits and services that may be of interest to you.

To Individuals Involved In Your Care Or Payment For Your Care

We may release your health information to a friend or family member who is involved in your medical care. We may also give information to someone who helps pay for your care. We may also tell your family or friends your location or general condition. In addition, we may disclose your health information to an entity assisting in a disaster relief effort so that your family can be notified about your condition, status, and location. Unless doing so is inconsistent with any prior expressed preference of the patient that is known to Sunset Healthcare, we may also disclose health information of a deceased patient to family members or friends who may have been involved in the care or payment for healthcare of the deceased patient. Such health information disclosed would be relevant to the level of involvement of the family member or friend.

THE FOLLOWING IS A SUMMARY OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH, AND PURPOSES FOR WHICH, YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION MAY ALSO BE USED AND DISCLOSED:

When Legally Required

We will disclose your health information when it is required to do so by any federal, state, or local law or regulations.

When There Are Risks to Public Health

We may disclose your health information for public activities and purposes to:

• Prevent or control disease, injury, or disability, report disease, injury, vital events such as birth or death, and the conduct of public health surveillance, investigations, and interventions.
• Report adverse events, and product defects, to track products or enable product recalls, repairs, and replacements and to conduct post-marketing surveillance and compliance with requirements of the Food and Drug Administration.
• Notify a person who has been exposed to a communicable disease or who may be at risk of contracting or spreading a disease.
• Notify an employer about an individual who is a member of the workforce as legally required.

To Report Abuse, Neglect, Or Domestic Violence

We are allowed to notify government authorities if we believe a patient is the victim of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence. We will make this disclosure only when specifically required or authorized by law or when the patient agrees to the disclosure.

To Conduct Health Oversight Activities

We may disclose your health information to a health oversight agency for activities including audits, civil administrative or criminal investigations, inspections, licensure, or disciplinary action. We, however, may not disclose your health information if you are the subject of an investigation not directly related to your receipt of healthcare or public benefits.

In Connection With Judicial And Administrative Proceedings

We may disclose your health information in the course of any judicial or administrative proceeding in response to an order of a court or administrative tribunal as expressly authorized by such order or in response to a subpoena, discovery request, or other lawful process, but only if reasonable efforts have been made to either notify you about the request or to obtain an order protecting your health information.

For Law Enforcement Purposes

We may disclose your health information to a law enforcement official for certain law enforcement purposes as follows:

• As required by law (including court orders, court-ordered warrants, and subpoenas) and administrative requests.
• To identify or locate a suspect, fugitive, material witness, or missing person.
• In response to a law enforcement official’s request for information about a victim or suspected victim of a crime.
• To alert law enforcement of your death if we suspect criminal activity caused the death.
• When we believe your health information is evidence of a crime that occurred on our premises.
• In a medical emergency not occurring on our premises, when necessary to inform law enforcement about the commission and nature of a crime, the location of the crime or crime victims, and the perpetrator of the crime.

To Coroners And Medical Examiners

We may disclose your health information to coroners and medical examiners for purposes of identifying a deceased person, determining the cause of death, or for other duties, as authorized by law.

To Funeral Directors

We may disclose your health information to funeral directors as necessary to carry out their duties with respect to your funeral arrangements. We may disclose your health information prior to and in reasonable anticipation of your death to the funeral director, if necessary, to carry out their duties.

For Organ, Eye, Or Tissue Donation

We may use or disclose your health information to organ procurement organizations or other entities engaged in the procurement, banking, or transplantation of organs, eyes