Understanding the Type of Information We Have. We get information about you when you enroll. It includes your date of birth, sex, ID number and other information. We also get bills, reports from your doctor and other data about your health care.

Our Privacy Commitment To You. We care about your privacy. The information we collect about you is private. We are required to give you a notice of our privacy practices, to follow these practices, and to notify affected individuals following a breach of unsecured protected health information. Only people who have both the need and the legal right may see your information. We may disclose your information without your permission for purposes of treatment, payment, healthcare operations or when we are required by law to do so. For examples of some of the disclosures referenced below, go to www.michigan.gov/mdch, click on Health Care Coverage, and look under Protected Medical Information.

• Treatment: We may disclose health information about you to coordinate your health care.
• Payment: We may use and disclose information so the care you get can be property billed and paid for.
• Health Care Operations: We may need to use and disclose information to operate the program.
• Exceptions: For certain kinds of records, such as psychotherapy notes, your permission may be needed even for release for treatment, payment and health care operations.
• As Required By Law: We will release information when we are required by law to do so.
• With Your Permission: If you give us permission in writing, we may use and disclose your health information. If you give us permission, you have the right to change your mind and revoke it. This must be in writing, too. We cannot take back any uses or disclosures already made with your permission. With your consent, we may notify or release information about you to a friend or family member who is involved in your care

ADDITIONAL EXAMPLES OF DISCLOSURES THAT MAY BE MADE WITHOUT YOUR PERMISSION

• BUSINESS ASSOCIATES: There are some services provided in our organization through contracts with Business Associates. To protect your health information, however, we require the business associate to appropriately safeguard your information.
• RESEARCH: Information will not be provided to researchers without your signed informed consent, or unless the research has been approved by an institutional review board or a privacy board and the researchers ensure the privacy of your information.
• FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA): We may disclose to the FDA health information relative to adverse events with respect to food, supplements, product and product defects, or post marketing surveillance information to enable product recalls, repairs, or replacement.
• WORKER COMPENSATION: We may disclose health information to the extent authorized by and to the extent necessary to comply with laws relating to workers compensation or other similar programs established by law.
• PUBLIC HEALTH: As authorized by law, we may disclose your health information to public health or legal authorities charged with preventing or controlling disease, injury, or disability.
• LAW ENFORCEMENT: We may disclose health information for law enforcement purposes as required by law or in response to a valid court order.
• VICTIMS OF ABUSE, NEGLECT, OR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE: We may disclose information about you to a government authority, such as a social service or protective agency, if we reasonably believe you are a victim of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence. We will only disclose this type of information to the extent required by law, if you agree to the disclosure, or if the disclosure is allowed by law and we believe it is necessary to prevent serious harm to you or someone else.
• TO AVERT A SERIOUS THREAT TO HEALTH OR SAFETY: If there is a compelling need, we may disclose information to prevent a serious threat to your health or safety or the health and safety of the public or another person.
• HEALTH OVERSIGHT: We may disclose health information to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law.
• INMATES: If you are an inmate of a correctional institution or under the custody of a law enforcement official, we may release medical information about you to the correctional institution or law enforcement official. This release would be necessary for the institution to provide you with health care; to protect your health and safety or the health and safety of others; or for the safety and security of the correctional institution.
• SPECIAL SITUATIONS: Consistent with applicable law, we may disclose health information to funeral directors, coroners, medical examiners; as required by military command authorities; and for national security activities. A mental health services recipient’s information will be disclosed only as allowed under Michigan law.

If we use or disclose your information for any purpose that is not described in this notice, we will do so only with your permission. For example, we will not sell, market, or use your information for fundraising without your permission.

YOUR PRIVACY RIGHTS

You have the following rights regarding the health information that we have about you. Your requests must be made in writing to the Michigan Department of Community Health at the address below. You have a right to: