HIPAA
HIPAA is a federal law that protects billing records and health records PIC receives from your child's other providers, like doctors or specialists. It gives you the right to see those records, ask us to fix mistakes, and control who sees them. This section explains how PIC keeps that information safe and what you can do if you have questions.
What This Protects
HIPAA covers two main types of records at PIC. The first is billing records, anything PIC creates or sends when we bill Medicaid, TRICARE, your insurance, or another payer for your child's services. The second is health records PIC receives from outside providers, like a pediatrician's referral, a hospital evaluation, or a specialist's report. These outside records are protected under HIPAA when PIC first receives them. Most of the other records PIC creates about your child's services, like evaluations, IFSPs, and service notes, are protected under a separate law called FERPA.
How HIPAA and FERPA Work Together
HIPAA and FERPA are two different federal laws that protect different types of records at PIC. Most of your child's records,like evaluations, IFSPs, service notes, and progress reports, are covered by FERPA because they are early intervention education records. Records related to billing and health records PIC receives from your child's other providers are covered by HIPAA. Both laws give you similar rights: to see your child's records, ask for corrections, and control who else can see them. The main difference is where you file a complaint if something goes wrong. FERPA complaints go to the U.S. Department of Education. HIPAA complaints go to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. PIC's Privacy Officer can help you figure out which type of record is involved and where to direct your concern.
What This Looks Like for Your Family
When your family starts the process with PIC, you will receive a Notice of Privacy Practices that explains how PIC handles HIPAA-covered records. You will be asked to sign it to show you received it. After that, HIPAA mostly works in the background. You may notice it most when PIC shares billing information with your health plan, when PIC receives records from one of your child's other providers, or when you ask to see your child's billing records. If you ask to see a HIPAA-covered record, PIC will give you access within 30 days. If you think something is wrong, you can ask us in writing to fix it.
What You Can Ask For
You have the right to ask for any of the following at any time:
A copy of your child's health records. A copy of PIC's Notice of Privacy Practices. A list of everyone PIC has shared your child's information with. A correction to anything in your child's records that you believe is wrong. A change to how PIC contacts you, for example, a different phone number or address. You can also file a complaint if you ever feel your privacy rights have not been respected. You can contact PIC's Privacy Officer, Micheala Phillips, at (907) 550-3087 or mphillips@picak.org, or file a complaint directly with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services at hhs.gov/hipaa/filing-a-complaint. Filing a complaint will never affect your child's services.
Please see our full Notice of Privacy Practices (HIPAA) below: