Effective Date: 6/1/2026
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.
Lifeline Health (“Lifeline Health,” “we,” “us,” and “our”), including Lifeline Health Florida, is required by law to protect the privacy of your protected health information (PHI), to provide you with this Notice of our legal duties and privacy practices, and to follow the terms of the Notice currently in effect. This Notice applies to all records of your care created or maintained by Lifeline Health.
PHI is information that identifies you and relates to your past, present, or future physical or mental health, the care you receive, or payment for that care. Because Lifeline Health provides testing and treatment for HIV and sexually transmissible infections, much of your information receives heightened protection under Florida law, as described in Section 5.
1. How We May Use and Disclose Your Health Information Without Your Written Authorization
We may use and disclose your PHI without your written authorization for the following purposes.
Treatment. We may use and disclose your PHI to provide, coordinate, or manage your care, including sharing information among our clinicians and with other providers involved in your treatment. For example, we may share test results with a treating provider to arrange Hepatitis C or HIV treatment.
Payment. We may use and disclose your PHI to obtain payment or reimbursement for services, including determining eligibility for no-cost programs, billing third-party payors when applicable, and grant or program reporting that supports funded services. Disclosures of HIV and STI information for payment purposes are subject to the additional restrictions in Section 5.
Health Care Operations. We may use and disclose your PHI for operations such as quality improvement, staff training, program evaluation, compliance, and administrative functions necessary to run our programs.
Appointment Reminders and Health Information. We may contact you by telephone, text message (SMS), email, mail, or other communication methods you authorize regarding appointment reminders, treatment options, test results, care coordination, services, health-related benefits, or program information. We will take reasonable steps to protect your confidentiality and will use the communication preferences you provide to us whenever practicable.
2. Other Uses and Disclosures Permitted or Required Without Your Authorization
Subject to the heightened protections in Section 5, we may use or disclose your PHI without your authorization in the following circumstances:
- As required by law, when federal, state, or local law requires the use or disclosure.
- Public health activities, including reporting communicable diseases to the Florida Department of Health. Positive HIV and certain STI results are reported to the county health department as required by law, including information sufficient to identify the test subject for disease control and partner services.
- Health oversight activities such as audits, investigations, inspections, and licensure by government agencies.
- Judicial and administrative proceedings, in response to a court order. As described in Section 5, a subpoena alone is not sufficient to require disclosure of HIV test results under Florida law.
- Law enforcement, only as specifically permitted or required by law and subject to the restrictions in Section 5.
- To avert a serious threat to your health or safety or that of others.
- Research, when an authorized review process has approved the research and protections are in place; researchers may not disclose identifying information about test subjects.
- Workers’ compensation, as authorized by and to the extent necessary to comply with workers’ compensation laws.
- Coroners, medical examiners, and funeral directors, as authorized by law.
- Specialized government functions, such as military, national security, or correctional purposes, as permitted by law.
3. Uses and Disclosures That Require Your Written Authorization
Other uses and disclosures of your PHI will be made only with your written authorization. This includes most disclosures of HIV and STI information (see Section 5), any sale of PHI, most marketing communications, and any use not described in this Notice. You may revoke an authorization in writing at any time, except to the extent we have already acted in reliance on it.
4. Where State Law Is More Protective
Where Florida law is more protective of your health information than HIPAA, we follow Florida law. The protections for HIV and STI information described in Section 5 are an example of state requirements that are stricter than the federal standard.
5. Special Confidentiality Protections for HIV and STI Information (Florida Law)
Because we provide HIV and STI testing and treatment, most of your information with us is subject to heightened confidentiality under Florida law, including Section 381.004 and Chapter 384 of the Florida Statutes.
Informed consent. We obtain your informed consent before performing an HIV test, and we explain your right to confidential treatment of your identity and results. In a clinical setting, you have the right to decline testing, and your decision will be documented.
Confidentiality of identity and results. The identity of any person tested and the results of any HIV or STI test are confidential and exempt from public records disclosure. We will not disclose your identity or results except to you or your legally authorized representative, to persons you authorize in a specific written release, to providers involved in your care, to public health authorities as required by law, or in the other limited circumstances permitted by Florida law.
A general authorization is not enough. Under Florida law, a general medical release does not authorize disclosure of HIV test results. A specific written authorization is required.
Court orders, not subpoenas. HIV test results may not be released in response to a subpoena alone. A court order meeting the requirements of Florida law is required.
Re-disclosure warning. When we disclose HIV or STI information as permitted by law, we include the following or substantially similar statement:
“This information has been disclosed to you from records whose confidentiality is protected by state law. State law prohibits you from making any further disclosure of such information without the specific written consent of the person to whom such information pertains, or as otherwise permitted by state law. A general authorization for the release of medical or other information is NOT sufficient for this purpose.”
Penalties for misuse. Florida law imposes criminal penalties on those who improperly disclose this information.
6. Your Rights Regarding Your Health Information
You have the following rights with respect to your PHI:
- Right to access and obtain a copy. You may inspect and request a copy of your medical and billing records, in the form and format you request when readily producible. We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee.
- Right to request an amendment. You may request that we amend information you believe is incorrect or incomplete. We may deny the request in certain cases and will explain why in writing.
- Right to an accounting of disclosures. You may request a list of certain disclosures we have made of your PHI, other than disclosures for treatment, payment, operations, and certain others.
- Right to request restrictions. You may request that we limit how we use or disclose your PHI. We are not required to agree to all requests, but we will honor a request to restrict disclosure to a health plan for a service you paid for in full out of pocket, as required by law.
- Right to request confidential communications. You may ask us to contact you in a specific way or at a specific location, such as by a particular phone number. We will accommodate reasonable requests.
- Right to a paper copy of this Notice. You may request a paper copy at any time, even if you agreed to receive it electronically.
- Right to be notified of a breach. You have the right to be notified if there is a breach of your unsecured PHI.
- Right to revoke an authorization. Where you have authorized a use or disclosure, you may revoke it in writing, except to the extent we have already acted in reliance on it.
To exercise any of these rights, contact our Privacy Officer using the information in Section 10.
7. Our Duties
We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your PHI, to provide you with this Notice, to notify you following a breach of unsecured PHI, and to abide by the terms of the Notice currently in effect.
8. Changes to This Notice
We reserve the right to change this Notice and to make the revised Notice effective for PHI we already have as well as information we receive in the future. The current Notice will be posted at our locations and on our Websites, and the effective date will appear at the top.
9. Complaints
If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with us by contacting our Privacy Officer. You may also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights. We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights
200 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20201
Phone: 1-877-696-6775
Website: www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints
10. Contact Information
For questions about this Notice or to exercise your rights, contact:
Lifeline Health
Attn: Erik Pavao, Privacy Officer
1311 North Federal Hwy, Suite 11, Hollywood, FL 33020
Phone: (888) 202-6052
Email: admin@lifelinehealthfl.org