Privacy policy

Effective Date: July 1, 2024 

HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practice 

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. 

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) is a federal law designed to protect  your privacy whenever your health care providers, like the International Board Certified Lactation Consultant  (IBCLC), have to discuss your case, or send information about you to different offices. Raindrops and Rainbows,  LLC is required to keep a file to record our consult, but the private, protected health information (PHI) in it will  be kept confidential. IBCLCs within Raindrops and Rainbows can freely share all the details of your personal  health information for purposes of “treatment, payment and health care operations.” That means the IBCLC can  talk to you about your situation and discuss it with your other health care providers. If you are referred to other  specialists, the IBCLC can send the information on to them. The IBCLC can also share information with your  health insurance company if they need it. The law also requires Raindrops and Rainbows to share your  information under other, very precise situations: for example, if a subpoena has been served on this office to turn  over medical records or a federal agency is investigating a complaint that we have not been protecting your  privacy. Any other time the IBCLC or Raindrops and Rainbows shares your personal health information must  be with your specific, written authorization first. When you give Raindrops and Rainbows permission to turn  over information about you, we can give out only the minimum amount of information needed to get the job  done. If there are other instances where the IBCLC may wish to share your information, you will be asked to  consent to each instance separately, and you may choose not to consent to any or all additional sharing. Under  HIPAA, the IBCLC can call or write you to remind you to come back for an appointment or to tell you how you  can get a product or service that might interest you and your family. 

You have four rights under HIPAA: 

1. Access: you can ask the IBCLC to see all your protected health information (PHI) on file 2. Amendment: you can ask the IBCLC to change their files to amend inaccurate PHI 3. Disclosure Accounting: you can ask to whom the IBCLC has given your PHI 

4. Restriction Request: you can put limits on the IBCLCʼs use and sharing of your PHI. 

Raindrops and Rainbows’ duty under HIPAA is to give you this notice, so you understand that we have promised  to keep your private health information confidential. If this notice is amended in the future, we will make a new  copy available. If you have any questions or concerns on your private information and how it is protected, please  contact the owner and Privacy Officer for Raindrops and Rainbows, Amanda Smith at 309-431-1608 or  amandas@raindropsandrainbows.com.  

If you believe your privacy has not been protected, we have a duty to attempt to address the situation. If the  Privacy Officer does not address your complaint adequately, you can go to the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) of  the Federal Health and Human Services Dept. to ask that a formal investigation be made. You cannot be  penalized for making a complaint. You can get all the details from them by calling (toll free) 1- 800-368-1019  or file a complaint at: http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints/index.html