Notice of Privacy Practices

Hughes Chiropractic and Massage
1222 Bronson Way North, Suite 120
Renton, WA 98057
Phone: (425) 271-4543
Effective Date: May 9, 2025

THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN ACCESS IT. PLEASE READ IT CAREFULLY.

At Hughes Chiropractic and Massage, we are committed to protecting the confidentiality of your personal health information. This Notice explains how we may use and disclose your protected health information (PHI), your legal rights under state and federal laws, and how you can exercise those rights.

We are required by law to:

• Maintain the privacy of your PHI;
• Provide you with this Notice of our legal duties and privacy practices;
• Notify you in the event of a breach of your unsecured health information;
• Comply with the terms of this Notice.

We also comply with Washington State’s My Health, My Data Act (RCW 19.373), which expands the definition of health data and places stricter consent and disclosure requirements on providers like us.

HOW WE MAY USE AND DISCLOSE YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION

We may use or share your PHI for the following purposes without requiring your written authorization:

1. Treatment – To coordinate your care with other healthcare professionals, such as chiropractors, physicians, labs, pharmacies, or imaging centers involved in your care.
2. Payment – To bill and collect payment from your insurance company, third-party payers, or you directly.
3. Healthcare Operations – For administrative purposes, including improving care quality, staff training, compliance audits, licensing, or legal reviews.
4. Appointment Reminders – To remind you of upcoming appointments via phone, text, voicemail, or email.
5. Check-In Procedures – We may use sign-in sheets or call your name in the waiting area.
6. Family and Others Involved in Your Care – Unless you object, we may disclose relevant information to a family member or caregiver involved in your treatment or payment.
7. Public Health and Safety – To report concerns such as contagious diseases, adverse reactions, suspected abuse or neglect, or threats to health and safety.
8. Legal Requirements – To comply with subpoenas, court orders, or mandatory governmental reporting.
9. Law Enforcement and Coroners – To support legal investigations, identify a deceased person, or determine cause of death.
10. Workers’ Compensation – To comply with state workers’ compensation laws if your condition is work-related.
11. Health Oversight Agencies – To allow government agencies to conduct audits, inspections, or investigations.
12. Specialized Government Functions – To disclose limited PHI for military, national security, or correctional purposes.
13. Change of Ownership – If this practice is sold or merged, your PHI may be transferred to the new owner.
14. Breach Notification – We will notify you as required by law if there is ever a breach of your unsecured PHI.
15. Marketing and Sale of Health Information – We will not use or sell your health information for marketing or commercial purposes without your written authorization.

YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION

You have the following rights with respect to your PHI:

1. Right to Request Restrictions – You may request limitations on how we use or disclose your information. We are not required to agree to all requests, but will comply with restrictions related to services paid out-of-pocket.
2. Right to Confidential Communication – You may request communications in a specific way or at a specific address (e.g., home, email, work).
3. Right to Access and Copies – You may inspect or obtain copies of your PHI. We will provide it in your preferred format when reasonably possible and may charge a reasonable fee.
4. Right to Amend Record – You may request we amend inaccurate or incomplete health information. We may deny the request if records are accurate or not created by us.
5. Right to an Accounting of Disclosure – You may request a record of non-routine disclosures we’ve made in the past six years.
6. Right to a Paper or Digital Copy of This Notice – You may request a paper or electronic copy of this Notice at any time, even if you received it electronically.

WASHINGTON’S MY HEALTH, MY DATA ACT (MHMDA)

We also comply with the My Health, My Data Act, which:

• Requires explicit opt-in consent before collecting or using consumer health data;
• Prohibits certain types of health-related geofencing and digital tracking;
• Grants consumers the right to access, delete, or withdraw consent for use of their data;
• Mandates a clear privacy policy and secure storage practices.

For more details, refer to our Consumer Health Data Privacy Policy available on our website and in our office.

CHANGES TO THIS NOTICE

We reserve the right to amend this Notice at any time. Updates will apply to all PHI we maintain, including past records. A current version will always be available in our office and on our website.

HOW TO FILE A COMPLAINT OR REQUEST MORE INFORMATION

If you have questions, concerns, or believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may contact us directly:

Privacy Officer
Hughes Chiropractic and Massage
1222 Bronson Way North, Suite 120
Renton, WA 98057
Phone: (425) 271-4543
Email: info@rentonchiropracticcare.com

You may also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services:
https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/filing-a-complaint/index.html
Email: OCRMail@hhs.gov
Phone: 1-800-368-1019

You will not be penalized for filing a complaint.