Valley Ambulance Services, Inc

Privacy Notice

THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.

Valley Ambulance Services, Inc is required by law to maintain the privacy of certain health care information we may obtain from a patient. This is known as protected health information (PHI). Valley Ambulance Services, Inc. is required to abide by the most current version of our privacy notice and polices as well as provide notice to the patient of our duties and privacy practices. Valley Ambulance Services, Inc reserves the right to change/revise our privacy practices, policies, procedures and this notice. These changes may effect how we use or disclose your PHI and the most current version of this notice will be available at our office.

Valley Ambulance Services, Inc may use and disclose PHI for treatment, payment, and other heath care operations (TPO). PHI exchanged for TPO may be verbal or written and transmitted/exchanged via person-to-person, paper copy, mail and/or other forms of electronic communications. We will use and disclose only the minimal amount of PHI to best protect your privacy and still provide quality TPO. 

Treatment: PHI may be obtained and exchanged with the receiving facility. This includes verbal and written communication we obtain from you or others and exchange in any form with the receiving facility. Example: The ambulance team will gain PHI in the course of treating you and report this information to the receiving facility. The team will also complete patient care forms documenting your care.

Payment:  PHI may be exchanged and/or organized by our company in order to be reimbursed for the services our company provided. These activities include submitting insurance claims, determining medical necessity, management of accounts receivables, management of insurance claims. Example: Our company may obtain PHI and insurance information from you OR the facility you are transported to or from to develop a billing statement for services and to manage your account, including billing, insurance claims, review of claims, and collection.

Health Care Operations:  PHI may be exchanged for the purposes of quality assurance, health over site, education/training to ensure our personnel meet our standard of care, policies, protocols, and applicable law, also in business planning. Information de-identified from you may be used for education/training, data collection, statistical review, marketing and fundraising. Example: Our company may exchange PHI between the physician medical director, management and your care provider to ensure that protocol was followed. Our Company may de-identify your PHI for case reviews, and group your information for statistical review. 

Contacting You: PHI may be use/disclosed so we may contact you as a reminder of any scheduled non-emergency transports, or to provide information on alternative medical transportation, or other health related benefits/services that we may offer to you. PHI may be used to obtain your contact information to raise funds or provide you with membership/subscription information.

Valley Ambulance Services, Inc may use and disclose PHI without your consent, authorization or permission for certain situations including; Emergency situations, when a substantial communications barrier exists, release to a relative or friend involved in your care, to a public health authority to protect the public’s health and for mandatory reporting requirements, for health oversight (inspections, licensing, investigations), upon a judicial or court order, in response to a subpoena, to law enforcement only to prevent a crime or to locate a suspect, for the national defense and security, to avert a serious threat to health and safety of others, for workers’ compensation purposes. Any use or disclosure not identified as a TPO or listed above Valley Ambulance Services, Inc will obtain a written authorization, of which you may revoke the authorization in writing at any time. 

You have the right to access copy or inspect your PHI and to amend that PHI. A reasonable fee may be charged for copies.

You have the right to request and accounting of uses or disclosures of your PHI other then those for TPO. 

You have the right to request we restrict the uses and disclosures of your PHI. We are not required to agree to your restrictions.  

You have the right to issue a complaint directly to us or to the Dept. of Health and Human Services. You may not be retaliated against.   

You have the right to a confidential communication with our office during our business hours.  

If you have any questions or to exercise any of your rights listed in this notice, Please, Contact 

Privacy Officer

Valley Ambulance Services, Inc.

422 South Belt Line Hwy East

Scottsbluff, NE  69361

(308) 635-0511