Privacy and Terms – L-MARC Research Center

**The following are the Louisville Metabolic and Atherosclerosis Research Center Privacy Policies (collection, use, and disclosure of personal information) and Terms of Use of this website (site).**

Our website address is: https://www.lmarc.com

If you choose to make an appointment or call us, then we will use the personal information you provide us to contact you and discuss our services. We may also use information we gather from users of this site to improve our site and services. By using our site, you are agreeing to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.

If visitors leave comments on the site, then we collect the data shown in the comments form, and also the visitor’s IP address and browser user agent string to help spam detection.

Information collection and use

While using our site, we may ask you to provide us with certain personally identifiable information that can be used to contact you or identify you. Like many site operators, we collect information that your browser sends whenever you visit our site.

Log data and analytics

Log data we collect may include information such as your computer's Internet Protocol & IP address, browser type, browser version, the pages of our site that you visit, the time and date of your visit, and the time spent on those pages and other statistics. In addition we may use third party services such as Google Analytics that collect, monitor and analyze this website.

Embedded content from other websites

Text and articles on this site may include embedded content (e.g. videos, images, articles, etc.). Embedded content from other websites behaves in the exact same way as if the visitor has visited the other website.

These websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with that embedded content, including tracking your interaction with the embedded content if you have an account and are logged in to that website.

How long we retain your data

If you leave a comment, then the comment and its metadata are retained indefinitely. This is so we can recognize and approve any follow-up comments automatically instead of holding them in a moderation queue.

Communications

We may use your personal information to contact you regarding our ongoing and future services, as well as other research opportunities.

Cookies

Cookies are files with small amounts of data, which may include an anonymous unique identifier. Cookies are sent to your browser from a website and stored on your computers hard drive. Like many websites, we use “cookies” to collect information. You can instruct your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, if you do not accept cookies, then you may not be able to use some portions of our site.

Security

The security of your personal information is important to us. We have safeguards in place to protect your personal health information. But no method of transmission over the Internet, or method of electronic storage is 100% secure. While we intend to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security due to the nature of the process.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy will remain in effect except with respect to any changes in its provisions in the future, which will be in effect immediately after being posted on this page. We reserve the right to update or change our Privacy Policy at any time. You should check this Privacy Policy periodically. Your continued use of the Service after we post any modifications to the Privacy Policy on this page will constitute your acknowledgment of the modifications and your consent to abide and be bound by the modified Privacy Policy.

Health Insurance Privacy and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Protected Health Information

L-MARC Research Center does not bill insurance companies, and is therefore not a "covered entity" under HIPAA. However we understand the importance of privacy and are committed to maintaining the confidentiality of your medical information, sometimes termed “protected health information.” We make a record of the medical care we provide and may receive such records from others. We may use these records:

To provide or enable other health care providers to provide quality medical care
To obtain payment for services provided to you as allowed by your health plan (in the event our services are, or become covered by health plans)
To enable us to meet our professional and legal obligations.

We are required by law to maintain the privacy of protected health information, to provide individuals with notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to protected health information, and to notify affected individuals following a breach of unsecured protected health information. This notice describes how we may use and disclose your medical information. It also describes your rights and our legal obligations with respect to your medical information. If you have any questions about this, please contact a staff member.

How might this medical practice use or disclose your health information?

This medical practice collects health information about you and stores it in a chart, on a computer, and in electronic health records/personal health records. The medical record is the property of this medical practice, but the information in the medical record belongs to you. The law permits us to use or disclose your health information for the following purposes:

Treatment. We use medical information about you to provide your medical care. We disclose medical information to our employees and others who are involved in providing the care you need, such as your other treating clinicians. We may share your medical information with other physicians or other health care providers who will provide services we do not provide. We may share this information with your insurance company to obtain your medical history and retrieve your medication history. We may share this information with a pharmacy to retrieve a record of your medications, or a pharmacist who needs it to dispense a prescription to you. We may share this information to a laboratory that performs a test. We may also disclose medical information to members of your family or others who can help you when you are sick or injured, or in the event of your death.
Payment. In the event our services are, or become covered by your health insurance, then we will use and disclose medical information about you to obtain payment for the services we provide. We may also disclose information to other health care providers to assist them in obtaining payment for services they have provided to you.
Health Care Operations. We may use and disclose medical information about you to operate this medical practice. For example, we may use and disclose this information to review and improve the quality of care we provide, or the competence and qualifications of our professional staff. Or we may use and disclose this information to work with your health plan to authorize services or referrals. We may also use and disclose this information as necessary for medical reviews, legal services and audits, including fraud and abuse detection and compliance programs and business planning and management. We may also share your medical information with our "business associates," such as our billing service, that perform administrative services for us. We have a written contract with each of these business associates that contains terms requiring them and their subcontractors to protect the confidentiality and security of your protected health information. We may also share your information with other health care providers, health care clearinghouses or health plans that have a relationship with you, when they request this information to help them with their quality assessment and improvement activities, their patient-safety activities, their population-based efforts to improve health or reduce health care costs, their protocol development, case management or care-coordination activities, their review of competence, qualifications and performance of health care professionals, their training programs, their accreditation, certification or licensing activities, or their health care fraud and abuse detection and compliance efforts.
Appointment Reminders. We will use and disclose medical information to contact and remind you about appointments or need to reschedule through email, phone and/or text messages. If you are not home, we may leave a voice mail about your appointment on your answering machine or with the person answering the phone.
Sign In Sheet. We may use and disclose medical information about you by having you sign in when you arrive at our office. We may also call out your name when we are ready to see you.
Notification and Communication With Family. Unless you had previously instructed us otherwise, then with regard to your location, general condition, and/or in the event of your death, we may disclose your personal and health information to your family member, your personal representative, or to another person responsible for your care. In the event of a disaster, we may disclose information to a relief organization so that they may coordinate these notification efforts. We may also disclose information to someone who is involved with your care or helps pay for your care. If you are able and available to agree or object, we will give you the opportunity to object prior to making these disclosures, although we may disclose this information in a disaster even over your objection if we believe it is necessary to respond to the emergency circumstances. If you are unable or unavailable to agree or object, our health professionals will use their best judgment in communication with your family and others.
Marketing. Provided we do not receive any payment for making these communications, we may contact you to give you information about products or services related to your treatment, case management or care coordination, or to direct or recommend other treatments, therapies, health care providers or settings of care that may be of interest to you. We may similarly describe products or services provided by this practice and tell you which health plans this practice utilizes or participates. We may also encourage you to maintain a healthy lifestyle and get recommended tests, participate in a disease management program, provide you with small gifts, tell you about government-sponsored health programs or encourage you to purchase a product or service when we see you, for which we may be paid. Finally, we may receive compensation which covers our cost of reminding you to take and refill your medication, or otherwise communicate about a drug or biologic that is currently prescribed for you. We will not otherwise use or disclose your medical information for marketing purposes or accept any payment for other marketing communications without your prior written authorization. The authorization will disclose whether we receive any compensation for any marketing activity you authorize, and we will stop any future marketing activity to the extent you revoke that authorization.
Sale of Health Information. We will not sell your health information without your prior written authorization.
Required by Law. As required by law, we will use and disclose your health information, but we will limit our use or disclosure to the relevant requirements of the law. When the law requires us to report abuse, neglect or domestic violence, or respond to judicial or administrative proceedings, or to law enforcement officials, we will further comply with the requirement set forth below concerning those activities.
Public Health. We may, and are sometimes required by law, to disclose your health information to public health authorities for purposes related to: preventing or controlling disease, injury or disability; reporting child, elder or dependent adult abuse or neglect; reporting domestic violence; reporting to the Food and Drug Administration problems with products and reactions to medications; and reporting disease or infection exposure. When we report suspected elder or dependent adult abuse or domestic violence for which you are a potential victim, we will inform you or your personal representative promptly unless in our best professional judgment, we believe the notification would place you at risk of serious harm or would require informing a personal representative we believe is responsible for the abuse or harm.
Health Oversight Activities. We may, and are sometimes required by law, to disclose your health information to health oversight agencies during the course of audits, investigations, inspections, licensure and other proceedings, subject to the limitations imposed by law.
Judicial and Administrative Proceedings. We may, and are sometimes required by law, to disclose your health information in the course of any administrative or judicial proceeding to the extent expressly authorized by a court or administrative order. We may also disclose information about you in response to a subpoena, discovery request or other lawful process if reasonable efforts have been made to notify you of the request and you have not objected, or if your objections have been resolved by a court or administrative order.
Law Enforcement. We may, and are sometimes required by law, to disclose your health information to a law enforcement official for purposes such as identifying or locating a suspect, fugitive, material witness or missing person, complying with a court order, warrant, grand jury subpoena and other law enforcement purposes.
Coroners. We may, and are often required by law, to disclose your health information to coroners in connection with their investigations of deaths.
Organ or Tissue Donation. We may disclose your health information to organizations involved in procuring, banking or transplanting organs and tissues.
Public Safety. We may, and are sometimes required by law, to disclose your health information to appropriate persons in order to prevent or lessen a serious and imminent threat to the health or safety of a particular person or the general public.
Specialized Government Functions. We may disclose your health information for military or national security purposes or to correctional institutions or law enforcement officers that have you in their lawful custody.
Workers’ Compensation. We may disclose your health information as necessary to comply with workers’ compensation laws. For example, to the extent your care is covered by workers' compensation, we will make periodic reports to your employer about your condition. We are also required by law to report cases of occupational injury or occupational illness to the employer or workers' compensation insurer.
Change of Ownership. In the event that this medical practice is sold or merged with another organization, your health information/record will become the property of the new owner, although you will maintain the right to request that copies of your health information be transferred to another physician or medical group.
Breach Notification. In the case of a breach of protected health information, we will notify you as required by law. If you have provided us with a current e-mail address, we may use e-mail to communicate information related to the breach. In some circumstances our business associate may provide the notification. We may also provide notification by other methods as appropriate.
Psychological Notes. We will not use or disclose psychological notes without your prior written authorization except for the following: 1) use by the originator of the notes for your treatment, 2) for training our staff, students and other trainees, 3) to defend ourselves in the case of a legal proceeding, 4) if the law requires us to disclose the information to you or the Secretary of HHS or for some other reason, 5) in response to health oversight activities concerning your psychological evaluation, 6) to avert a serious and imminent threat to health or safety, or 7) to the coroner or medical examiner in the event of your death. To the extent you revoke an authorization to use or disclose your psychological notes, we will stop using or disclosing these notes.
Research. By signing this document, you agree to allow us to use protected health information data we collect for research purposes. We may disclose your health information to researchers conducting research without your written authorization, as approved by an Institutional Review Board or privacy board, in compliance with governing law. If your protected health information is used for research purposes, such as for the analysis of data we collected from you (and others) before the research started, the research report will be “de-identified.” This means any data collected will not identify you as an individual. Nothing about you as an individual will be included in any research publication, without your separate authorization, allowing us to do so.

Can you revoke your authorization to disclose your health information?

Yes. If you authorize this medical practice to use or disclose your health information, then you may revoke your authorization in writing at any time – which will apply to the items listed above not otherwise required by law.

What are some of your health information rights?

Right to Request Special Privacy Protections. You have the right to request restrictions on certain uses and disclosures of your health information by a written request specifying what information you want to limit, and what limitations on our use or disclosure of that information you wish to have imposed. If you tell us not to disclose information to your commercial health plan concerning health care items or services for which you paid for in full out-of-pocket, then we will abide by your request, unless we must disclose the information for treatment or legal reasons. We reserve the right to accept or reject any other request, and will notify you of our decision.
Right to Request Confidential Communications. You have the right to request that you receive your health information in a specific way or at a specific location. For example, you may ask we send information to a particular e-mail account or to your work address. We will comply with all reasonable requests submitted in writing which specify how or where you wish to receive these communications.
Right to Inspect and Copy. You have the right to inspect and copy your health information, with limited exceptions. If you do not to wish to receive your medical information electronically, then you must submit a written request detailing what information you want access to, whether you want to inspect it or get a copy of it, and if you want a copy, your preferred form and format. We will provide copies in your requested form and format if it is readily producible, or we will provide you with an alternative format you find acceptable, or if we can’t agree and we maintain the record in an electronic format, your choice of a readable electronic or hardcopy format. We will also send a copy to any other person you designate in writing. We will charge a reasonable fee which covers our costs for labor, supplies, postage, and if requested and agreed to in advance, the cost of preparing an explanation or summary. We may deny your request under limited circumstances. If we deny your request to access your child's records, or the records of an incapacitated adult you are representing, because we believe allowing access would be reasonably likely to cause substantial harm to the patient, then you will have a right to appeal our decision.
Right to Amend or Supplement. You have a right to request that we amend your health information that you believe is incorrect or incomplete. You must make a request to amend in writing, and include the reasons you believe the information is inaccurate or incomplete. We are not required to change your health information, and will provide you with information about this medical practice's denial and how you can disagree with the denial. We may deny your request if we do not have the information, if we did not create the information (unless the person or entity that created the information is no longer available to make the amendment), if you would not be permitted to inspect or copy the information at issue, or if the information is accurate and complete as is. If we deny your request, you may submit a written statement of your disagreement with that decision, and we may, in turn, prepare a written rebuttal. All information related to any request to amend will be maintained and disclosed in conjunction with any subsequent disclosure of the disputed information.
Right to an Accounting of Disclosures. You have a right to receive an accounting of disclosures of your health information made by this medical practice, except that this medical practice does not have to account for the disclosures provided to you or pursuant to your written authorization, or as described in paragraphs 1 (treatment), 2 (payment), 3 (health care operations), 6 (notification and communication with family) and 17 (specialized government functions) of Section A of this Notice of Privacy Practices or disclosures for purposes of research or public health which exclude direct patient identifiers, or which are incident to a use or disclosure otherwise permitted or authorized by law, or the disclosures to a health oversight agency or law enforcement official to the extent this medical practice has received notice from that agency or official that providing this accounting would be reasonably likely to impede their activities.
Right to a Paper or Electronic Copy of this Notice. You have a right to notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to your health information, including a right to a paper copy of this Notice of Privacy Practices, even if you have previously requested its receipt by e-mail. If you would like to have a more detailed explanation of these rights or if you would like to exercise one or more of these rights, contact our Privacy Officer by asking any staff member.

What changes might we make to this Notice?

We reserve the right to amend this Notice of Privacy Practices at any time in the future. Until such amendment is made, we plan to comply with the terms of this Notice currently in effect. After an amendment is made, the revised Notice of Privacy Protections will apply to all protected health information that we maintain, regardless of when it was created or received. We will keep a copy of the current notice posted in our reception area, and a copy will be available at each appointment.

Where can you send complaints about Protected Health Information?

Complaints about this Notice of Privacy Practices or how this medical practice handles your health information should be directed to our Privacy Officer, who can best be contacted by asking any staff member.

If you are not satisfied with the manner in which this office handles a complaint, a complaint form may be found at www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints/hipcomplaint.pdf. You will not be penalized in any way for filing a complaint.

TERMS OF USE

Terms of use

By using our web site, you agree to these terms of use. If you do not agree to these terms of use, then you may not use this website. We reserve the right, at any time, to modify, alter or update these terms of use. You agree to be bound by such modifications, alterations or updates from the time they are posted on our web site. It is your responsibility to check the terms of use periodically.

Copyright

All content included in our web site, such as text, graphics, logos, button icons, images, and software, is the property of our website or its content suppliers, and protected by U.S. and international copyright laws. Reproduction, modification, distribution, transmission, republication, display or performance of the content of this website or its respective content suppliers, is strictly prohibited.

Trademarks

All trademarks, logos, service marks and trade names that appear on this web site are the trademarks of our website and other respective owners.

Disclaimer

The information, services, products offered for sale and materials contained in and/or advertised on this website, including, without limitation, text, graphics and links, are provided on an “as is” basis with no warranty. To the maximum extent permitted by law, our website and its suppliers disclaim all representations and warranties, express or implied, with respect to such information, services, products and materials, including, but not limited to, warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, title, non-infringement, freedom from computer virus and implied warranties arising from course of dealing or course of performance. In addition, our website and its suppliers do not represent or warrant that the information accessible on this website is accurate, complete or current. We are not responsible for typographical errors.

User reviews and other comments

All reviews, comments and other submissions provided to our website on or about this site, or otherwise submitted in connection with your use of the web site, shall be and remain our website’s property. Such disclosure, submission or offer of any comments shall be deemed an assignment to our website of all worldwide rights in all intellectual properties relating to the comments.

You agree that no comments submitted by you to our website will violate any right of any third party, including copyrights, trademark, privacy or other personal or proprietary right(s). You further agree that no comments submitted by you to the site will be or contain libelous or otherwise unlawful, abusive or obscene material. You are and shall remain solely responsible for the content of any comments you make. You agree that our website may use and/or disclose information consistent with our privacy policy.