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Best Tattoo Removal - Northshore Tattoo Removal Policies
Office, Privacy, HIPAA, Terms and Conditions

Please read our Privacy Policy for our website carefully.  By accessing www.stefanieaschultismd.com,  and/or www.northshoretattooremoval.com and/or our physical location, you agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of this Privacy Policy. We may revise and update this Privacy Policy from time to time without prior notice to you.  We will post the updated Privacy Policy to the website.

 

Any changes to this policy will apply immediately upon posting to this website. You hereby agree to, and shall be subject to, this policy and any changes made to it.  

Our website may include pages that give you the opportunity to provide us with Personal Information about yourself. As used in this Privacy Policy, "Personal Information" means any information that may be used, either alone or in combination with other information, to personally identify an individual. By submitting an information form on our website, you agree to our terms and conditions as outlined in our policies.

No website can guarantee security, but we maintain appropriate physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards to protect your personal information collected via our website forms in compliance with applicable law.

 

This website contains information and recommendations for educational purposes only. It does not contain thorough coverage of the topics addressed. The information published on this website is not a substitute for personal consultation with your healthcare provider. Contact your physician regarding your individual medical issue. We will protect personal information by reasonable security safeguards against loss or theft, as well as unauthorized access, disclosure, copying, use or modification.

 

In the event of an Emergency, GO TO THE EMERGENCY ROOM OF A LOCAL HOSPITAL OR DIAL 911 IMMEDIATELY. 

 

Information Collected

Whenever you interact with our website, we may receive and record information from your browser. Other information collected may include your IP address, the type of browser you are using to access our website, and the identity of the website page or demographic data. It is also possible we may collect information regarding the mobile devices you use to access or use our website.

How we use and disclose your information 

Our website may include or provide links to other sites on the Internet that we do not control.  

Privacy Policy Questions

Please contact our office at 985-898-1940

 

After Hours & Emergency Care

If you are experiencing an emergency, dial 911 or head to the nearest emergency room. For all other calls, an on-call physician is available 24-hours a day, 7-days a week.

 

Prescription Renewals

Prescriptions are renewed during normal office hours. Please have your pharmacy fax any refill request.  In some instances, we may require that the patient be seen in our office prior to medication renewal.

 

Financial

All office visits are payable at the time of service. We accept cash, checks, and most major credit cards and debit cards. Please contact our billing office should you have any financial questions or concerns.

 

Billing and Insurance

We participate with most local and many national insurance plans. However, it is your responsibility to understand whether your insurance has limits on the doctors you can see, or the services you can receive.

 

If you provide complete and accurate information about your insurance, we will submit claims to your insurance carrier and receive payments for services. Depending on your insurance coverage, you may be responsible for co-payments, co-insurance, or other deductible amounts.

 

Please contact our billing office or call your insurance carrier should you have questions.

HIPAA Privacy Rule

The HIPAA Privacy Rule provides federal protections for individually identifiable health information held by covered entities and their business associations and gives patients an array of rights with respect to that information.  At the same time, the Privacy Rule is balanced so that it permits the disclosure of health information needed for patient care and other important purposes.

Uses and Disclosures:

 

Treatment:

Your health information may be used by staff members or disclosed to other health care professionals for the purpose of evaluating your health, diagnosing medical conditions, and providing treatment.  For example, results of laboratory tests and procedures will be available in your medical record to all health professionals who may provide treatment or who may be consulted by staff members.

 

Payment:

Your health information may be used to seek payment from your health plan, from other sources of coverage such as an automobile insurer, or from credit card companies that you may use to pay for services.  For example, your health plan may request and receive information on dates of services, the services provided, and the medical condition being treated.

 

Health Care Operations:

Your health information may be used as necessary to support the day to day activities and management of Dr. Stefanie A, Schults, Medical Practice and Northshore Tattoo Removal.  For example, information on the services that you received may be used to support budgeting and financial reporting, and activities to evaluate and promote quality.

 

Law Enforcement:

Your health information may be disclosed to law enforcement agencies, without your permission, to support government audits and inspections, to facilitate law enforcement investigations, and to comply with government mandated reporting.

 

Public Health Reporting:

Your health information may be disclosed to public health agencies as required by law.  For example, we are required to report certain communicable diseases to the state’s public health department.

 

Other uses and disclosures require your authorization:

Disclosure of your health information or its use for any purpose other than those listed above requires your specific, written authorization.  If you change your mind after authorizing a use or disclosures of your information, you may submit a written revocation of the authorization.  However, your decision to revoke the authorization will not affect or undo any use or disclosure of information that occurred before you notified us of your decision.

 

Additional Uses of Information:

Information about treatments:

Your health information may be used to send you information on the treatment and management of your medical condition that you may find to be of interest.  We may also send you information describing other health-related goods and services that we believe may be of interest to you.

 

Individual Rights:

You have certain rights under the federal privacy standards.  These include:

  • The right to request restrictions on the use and disclosure of your protected health information.

  • The right to receive confidential communications concerning your medical condition and treatment

  • The right to inspect and copy your health information.  As permitted by federal regulation; we require that requests to inspect or copy protected health information be submitted in writing.  You may obtain a form to request access to your records by contacting one of our front office staff members. 

  • The right to amend or submit corrections to your protected health information.

  • The right to receive an accounting of how and to whom your protected health information has been disclosed.

  • The right to receive a printed copy of this notice.

 

We are required by law to maintain the privacy of your protected health information and to provide you with this notice of privacy practices. We are also required to abide by the privacy policies and practices that are outlined in this notice.

 

Effective Date:  April 14, 2003

Revised on September 2, 2020

Download HHS HIPAA Booklet

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Corona Virus Update

Accessibility Statement for Northshore Tattoo Removal

This is an accessibility statement from Northshore Tattoo Removal.

Conformance status

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) defines requirements for designers and developers to improve accessibility for people with disabilities. It defines three levels of conformance: Level A, Level AA, and Level AAA. Northshore Tattoo Removal is partially conformant with WCAG 2.1 level AA. Partially conformant means that some parts of the content do not fully conform to the accessibility standard.

 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and HIPAA Compliance

March 27, 2024

By Kenneth E. Rhea, M.D., FASHRM, LAMMICO Physician Consultant

 

 

Since the introduction of ChatGPT (Generative Pre-trained Transformer) in June 2020 by Open AI, the prominence of AI and machine learning foundational models have dramatically increased across all industries affecting operations and creating projections of both extreme benefits and concerns. Healthcare has been no exception. Discussions of AI and medical applications have shown that technology is already being incorporated into apps and used by millions of users.[1]

Before ChatGPT, AI was already prevalent in our lives. Streaming providers recommend TV shows and movies based on your preferences and search and watch history. Cars can “self-drive” with very little human control. Speech recognition and speech-to-text technology allows for accurate dictation and command of our devices without ever picking up a remote or our phones. And of course, chatbots, which have gotten better at resembling human texting.

AI is currently being used in medicine for numerous applications. Isabel, one of several clinical decision support tools currently used, has long been used by clinicians to improve diagnosis quality, leading to more cost-effective care. Other applications are relevant to compliance with the HIPAA privacy and security regulations. For instance:

  • AI-powered systems can enhance data security by implementing encryption, access controls, and monitoring mechanisms to safeguard patient information. These systems can detect anomalies in data access patterns and identify potential breaches.  Threat detection is one primary compliance goal that can be assisted by role-generative AI.[2]

  • Privacy and security regulations are based on the protection of individually identifiable health information, which, when handled in specific ways, becomes protected health information (PHI).  Therefore, anonymization and de-identification become necessary for some uses and disclosures. AI algorithms can assist in this process.

  • The HIPAA Security Rule requires training the medical workforce on the privacy and security of PHI. AI-driven platforms can provide (and perhaps even create) ongoing training and education to healthcare staff about HIPAA regulations, ensuring they stay updated and informed about compliance requirements, e.g., security reminders.

  • Control of access to medical information within medical systems is critical to compliance. AI can streamline and automate auditing processes and maintain comprehensive audit trails that track data access, modifications, and disclosures to assist with accurate compliance and related reporting, e.g., breach response processes.

While AI technologies can significantly assist healthcare providers in complying with HIPAA regulations, they should be consistently implemented and used very cautiously. Responsible and ethical use of AI in healthcare is crucial to ensure that patient privacy and data security are always maintained.  Human oversight and interpretation remain essential to validate AI-generated insights and decisions in any healthcare setting.  Remember that compliance with HIPAA regulations is the responsibility of the covered entity provider, and no amount of AI software assistance changes that fact.

[1] Byron J. AI and HIPAA Privacy Concerns. AIHC. https://aihc-assn.org/ai-and-hipaa-privacy-concerns/. August 3, 2023.

[2] Burshan C. The Role Generative AI Can Play in Threat Detection. InfoRisk Today. https://www.inforisktoday.com/role-generative-ai-play-in-threat-detection-a-22889?rf=2023-08-23_ENEWS_SUB_IR__Slot1_ART22889&mkt_tok=MDUxLVpYSS0yMzcAAAGNwmvcizJQktbS11bNbkCErgNrc1sDMGK9-n2u7yHdfUixnJfQGjBXs8IkCaZgv4LcmsEFtPNezXx_XNxaDpxRi1vrp54eCbuu3hE0jxnJNhx7sd0. August 22, 2023.

 

 

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