CLINICORE Contact

Notice of Privacy Practices

Effective date: May 2020

This notice describes how medical information about you may be used and disclosed, and how you can access that information. Please review it carefully.

This notice applies to laboratory services provided by Clinicore (“we” or “us”). Protected health information includes information that identifies you and relates to your laboratory testing, results, health, or payment for services.

How we use and share your information

We may use or disclose your health information without your written authorization when permitted by law to:

  • Provide care. We perform ordered or patient-initiated testing, report results, consult with your treating professionals, and, when needed, send a specimen or information to another laboratory to complete testing.
  • Obtain payment. We may submit claims, verify coverage, collect payment, and respond to questions or audits from a health plan or other payer.
  • Operate our laboratory. We use information for quality assurance, accreditation, compliance, training, customer service, and other activities needed to run our laboratory.
  • Meet public health and legal duties. We may make reports required by law, respond to authorized health oversight activities, and disclose information in other circumstances permitted or required by law, such as certain court proceedings or responses to a serious threat to health or safety.

We use or disclose information for research only as permitted by applicable privacy law, such as with your authorization, an approved waiver, or information that has been properly de-identified. We apply any more protective federal or Louisiana privacy rule that governs particular information.

We may share relevant information with a person involved in your care or payment for your care when you agree, have an opportunity to object and do not object, or when the law otherwise permits it. Tell us if you have a preference about such sharing.

Marketing and sale of information. We will obtain your written authorization for uses or disclosures that require it under HIPAA, including most marketing uses and any sale of protected health information. We will also obtain authorization for any other use or disclosure that this notice or the law does not permit. You may revoke an authorization in writing; revocation will not undo a disclosure we already made in reliance on it.

Information with additional protections. Some records, including certain genetic test results and substance use disorder treatment records covered by 42 CFR Part 2, have additional protections. If we hold Part 2 records, we will not use or disclose them in civil, criminal, administrative, or legislative investigations or proceedings against you without your written consent or the court order and subpoena required by law. We will handle genetic test information in accordance with applicable Louisiana and federal law.

Your rights

You may contact us to exercise the following rights:

  • Access your records and results. You may request to inspect or receive a paper or electronic copy of your laboratory records. We will verify your identity and respond within the time required by law. A fee, if any, will comply with applicable law.
  • Request a correction. You may ask us to amend information you believe is incorrect or incomplete. If we deny the request, we will explain why in writing.
  • Request a restriction. You may ask us to limit certain uses or disclosures. We are generally not required to agree. If you pay for a test in full out of pocket and ask us not to disclose information about that test to your health plan for payment or health care operations, we will honor that request unless disclosure is required by law.
  • Request confidential communication. You may ask us to contact you at a particular address or by a particular method. We will accommodate reasonable requests.
  • Request an accounting. You may ask for a list of certain disclosures we made during the preceding six years, subject to legal exceptions.
  • Receive another copy of this notice. You may request a paper copy at any time, even if you agreed to receive it electronically.
  • Designate a representative. A person legally authorized to act for you may exercise your rights after we verify that authority.
  • File a complaint. You may complain to Clinicore or to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights if you believe your privacy rights were violated. We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

Our responsibilities

We are required to protect the privacy and security of your protected health information, follow this notice, and notify you when required if a breach compromises your information. We may revise this notice and apply the revised notice to information we already hold. The current notice will be available upon request and at clinicorediagnostics.com.