Healthy Communities

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Notice

This information describes how medical information about you may be used and disclosed and how you can get access to this information.

The Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) is committed to protecting your health information.  This Notice is to inform you about our privacy practices and legal duties related to the protection of the privacy of your medical/health records that we create or receive.  

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HIPAA Privacy Notice | Spanish

How we may use and disclose medical information about you?

ADH staff will only use your health information when doing their jobs.  The purposes of the use and sharing of health information are for treatment, payment for services and for Agency operations. 

Other uses, sharing of health information or disclosures of health information required or allowed by law include: 

If you do not object and the situation is not an emergency and disclosure is not otherwise prohibited by stricter laws, the ADH is permitted to release your information under the following circumstances:   

 

Your Health Information Rights

Release of your information outside of the boundaries of ADH-related treatment, payment, or operations, or as otherwise permitted by state or federal law, will be made only with your specific written authorization.  Your specific written authorization is required to release the following types of information: Drug and Alcohol Abuse, Family Planning, HIV/AIDS, Mental Illness, Sexually Transmitted Diseases, and Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Program.  You may revoke specific authorizations to release your information, in writing, at any time.  If you revoke an authorization, we will no longer release your health information to the authorized recipient(s), except to the extent that the ADH has already used or released that information in reliance of the original authorization. 

In addition, you have the following rights regarding the health information that the ADH has about you:  

All requests for inspecting, copying, amending, making restrictions, or obtaining an accounting of your health information and any questions regarding this Privacy Notice must be directed to the Local Health Unit Hometown Health Leader.

 

Complaints

If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with the ADH by contacting: 

Privacy Officer 
Arkansas Department of Health
ADH.PrivacyOfficer@arkansas.gov
(501) 537-1290

Or with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services by calling them at 877-696-6775 or writing them at 200 Independence Ave. S.W., Washington, DC, 2020l.

Or with the Office of Civil Rights by calling 866-OCR-PRIV (866-627-7748), or 886-788-4989 TTY. 

 

Changes to Privacy Notice

The ADH reserves the right to revise this Privacy Notice effective for health information the ADH already has about you as well as any information received in the future. We will provide you with a copy of the revised Privacy Notice at your next visit following the effective date of the revised Privacy Notice. In addition, you may ask for a copy of our current Privacy Notice any time you visit an ADH facility for treatment or health care services. 

You may request translation or reading of this Privacy Notice. When possible, a written translation will be provided. 

Public Health Accrediation Board
Arkansas Department of Health
© 2017 Arkansas Department of Health. All Rights Reserved. www.healthy.arkansas.gov
4815 W. Markham, Little Rock, AR 72205-3867
1-800-462-0599