Notice of Privacy Practices

This Notice describes how personal and medical information about you may be used and disclosed and how you can get access to this information. Please review it carefully.

Effective April 14, 2003, the Child Health Plus program is required by Federal law to tell you how we use and share your health information. We also must tell you about your rights concerning this information. The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH), in contract with managed care plans and enrollment facilitators, operates the Child Health Plus program.

What Kinds of Health Information Do We Have?

The NYSDOH does not routinely maintain any health information about you. Instead, for Child Health Plus, we contract with managed health care plans and enrollment facilitators who maintain this information.

When you applied for the Child Health Plus program, you provided our contractors with very limited health information about your children. Specifically, when you completed Section G of the Growing Up Healthy or Access New York application, you answered either yes or no to questions as to whether your child(ren) were blind, disabled, handicapped, have a chronic illness or have any current injuries.

We occasionally receive health information about your child(ren), when you contact us to talk about health care coverage or to file complaints on loss of eligibility in the program. Additionally, when our auditors conduct audits at your health plan, they may review your Growing Up Healthy or Access New York application to verify your income and may see the information contained in Section G of the application.

Is Your Health and Personal Information Private?

Your information is private. We are required to keep your health and personal information private and share your information only in certain cases. Our contractors are also required to keep your health and personal information private. There are special rules about HIV/AIDS, mental health or drug and/or alcohol services. Our contractors must make special efforts to protect the names of people who get these services.

How Does the Child Health Plus Program Use and Share Your Health Information?

The Child Health Plus program must use and share your child(ren)'s health information:

  • With you or someone who has the legal right to act for you (for example, your health care proxy or a person designated by a specific release signed by you);
  • With the Federal Office of Civil Rights if necessary, to make sure your privacy is protected; and
  • When specifically required by law, for example, government agencies request the information as part of audits. We must provide the United States Department of Health and Human Services with your personal information to show that we are correctly paying for health care services and protecting your privacy.

The following are some examples of how we use and share your child(ren)'s information to run our programs. With your permission at the time of enrollment, we use your child(ren's) information to:

  • Make sure you are financially eligible and enrolled in the right health program. We may share your personal information with the NYS Department of Taxation and Finance to verify your income to make sure you are enrolled in the program that best meets your needs.
  • To make improvements to the eligibility process of the program. We may use your personal information with your consent to conduct evaluations done either by the NYSDOH or an outside consultant contracted with the State. For example, the NYSDOH may conduct evaluations related to disenrollment policies and procedures.

What Are My Rights?

You, or people who can act for you, have the right to:

  • Get a copy of this notice.
  • See or get a copy of your personal information. If your request is denied, you have the right to review the denial.
  • Ask to change your health or personal information.
  • Ask to limit how we use and share your information. We will look at all requests, to determine if we agree with you.
  • Ask for special forms that you can sign to allow us to give your personal information to people you choose. You can stop us from continuing to share this information at any time, as long as the information has not already been shared.
  • Ask for a list of the information that was shared and the people or organizations that got your information. The list will not include information used to pay for your health care services or to administer the Child Health Plus program or information released with your authorization.
  • Ask the Child Health Plus Program to communicate with you in a different manner or at a different place (for example, by sending materials to a P.O. box instead of your home address).

Remember: The Child Health Plus program only maintains the very limited health information you included in your application from Section G or when you contact us to talk about health care coverage or to file complaints on loss of eligibility in the program. To exercise your rights with respect to all of your other health information we advise you to contact your health plan directly.

See the New York State Department of Health web site for a copy of this notice: www.nyhealth.gov .

  1. For more privacy information, to make a privacy request or to report a privacy problem/complaint*, please contact the NYSDOH at: 518-473-4708.
  2. You may also report a complaint* to: The Office for Civil Rights, Department of Health and Human Services, Jacob Javits Federal Building, 26 Federal Plaza, Suite 3312, New York, New York 10278; (Telephone) (212) 264-3313; (Fax) (212) 264-3039; or (TDD) 264-2355.

If we change the information in this notice, we will send you a new notice and post a new notice on the New York State Department of Health web site.

*You will not be penalized for filing a complaint.