HIPAA Policy

HIPAA COMPLIANCE NOTICE

Updated: January 2026

Maryvale provides short-term housing, and community-based mental health, behavioral health, and early education programs that provide services throughout Los Angeles County.  All Maryvale sites and locations follow the terms of this notice. In addition, these entities, sites and locations may share medical information with each other for treatment, payment, or for the purposes of health care operations purposes.

Our Pledge Regarding Mental Health Information

We understand that information we maintain about you and your health is personal. We are committed to protecting medical, mental health and clinical information about you (“Medical Information”). We are required by law to maintain the privacy of your Medical Information, provide you information about our legal duties and privacy practices, inform you of your rights and the ways in which we may use Medical Information and disclose it to other entities and persons.

How Your Information May Be Shared:

The following categories describe different ways that we use and disclose your Medical Information. For each category of uses or disclosures, we will explain what we mean and try to give some examples. Not every use or disclosure in a category will be listed.

For Treatment

We may use Medical Information about you to provide you with treatment or services. We may disclose Medical Information about you to clinicians, doctors, nurses, interns or other Maryvale personnel who are involved in your care. For example, a contracted psychiatrist treating you may need to know what medications you are currently taking, because the medications may affect what other medications may be prescribed for you. We may also disclose Medical Information about you to people outside Maryvale who may be involved in your treatment or as part of coordinating follow-up care. These people may include health care providers and community agencies.

For Payment

We may use and disclose Medical Information about you so that the treatment and services you receive at Maryvale may be billed to and payment may be collected from you, the county, an insurance company, or a third party. For example, we may need to give information about treatment you received at Maryvale to your health plan so it will pay us or reimburse you for the treatment. We may also tell your health plan about a treatment you are going to receive to obtain prior approval or to determine whether your plan will cover the treatment.

For Program Treatment Operations

We may use and disclose Medical Information about you for Maryvale health care operations. These uses and disclosures are necessary to run the agency and make sure that all of our clients receive quality care. For example, we may use Medical Information to review our treatment and services and to evaluate the performance of our staff in caring for you. We may also combine Medical Information about many Maryvale clients to decide what additional services we should offer, what services are not needed, and whether certain new treatments are effective. We may also disclose information to other Maryvale personnel for review and learning purposes.

Appointment Reminders

We may use and disclose Medical Information to contact you as a reminder that you have an appointment for treatment.

Treatment Alternatives

We may use and disclose Medical Information to tell you about or to recommend possible treatment options or alternatives which may be of interest to you.

Health-Related Benefits and Services

We may use and disclose Medical Information to tell you about our services which may be of interest to you.

Fundraising Activities

While unlikely, it is possible on rare occasions that Maryvale may use your Medical Information to raise money for Maryvale and its operations. We may use contact information, such as your name, address and phone number, date of birth, healthcare provider’s name, the outcome of your care, department where you received services and the dates you received treatment or services at Maryvale.  In accordance with § 164.514(f)(1), we may contact you to raise funds for Maryvale and you have a right to opt out of receiving such communications.

Marketing

We must receive your written authorization for any use or disclosure of protected Medical Information for marketing.

Sale Of PHI

We must receive your authorization for any disclosure of your protected health information which is a sale of protected health information.  Such authorization will state that the disclosure will result in payment to Maryvale.

Individuals Involved in Your Care Or Payment For Your Care

We will not release Medical Information about you to a friend or family member without your prior consent (or that of your legal guardian/parent if under 18). Without the authorized representative’s consent, we will not release your condition or the fact that you are temporarily housed at Maryvale and/or participating in a Maryvale program to your family and friends. We may disclose Medical Information to an entity assisting in disaster relief effort so that your family can be notified about your condition, status, and location.

Research

Under certain circumstances, we may use and disclose Medical Information about you for research purposes. For example, a research project may involve comparing the health and recovery of all clients who received one treatment to those who received another, for the same condition. All research projects, however, are subject to a special approval process. This process evaluates a proposed research project and its use of Medical Information, trying to balance the research needs with clients’ need for privacy of their health information. Before we use or disclose Medical Information for research, the project will have been approved through this research approval process. We will obtain authorized consent before having you participate in a program that is part of a research project.

Business Associates

There are circumstances where services are provided to Maryvale through third-party “business associates.” Maryvale may disclose your protected Medical Information to business associates so they can perform the services that Maryvale has asked them to do. To protect your information and meet contract requirements, Maryvale requires that these business associates follow the same rules (per HIPAA) that are set out in this notice and that they notify Maryvale in the event of a breach of your unsecured protected Medical Information.

Psychotherapy Notes

Psychotherapy notes means notes recorded (in any medium) by a health care provider who is a mental health professional documenting or analyzing the contents of conversation during a private counseling session or a group, joint, or family counseling session.

Psychotherapy notes have additional protections under federal law and most uses or disclosures of psychotherapy require your written authorization.

As Required By Law

We will disclose Medical Information about you when required to do so by federal, state, or local law (for example, for suspected child abuse.)

To Avert A Serious Threat To Health Or Safety

We may use and disclose Medical Information about you when necessary to prevent a serious threat to your health and safety, or the health and safety of the public or another person. Any disclosure, however, would only be to someone able to help prevent the threat.

Special Situations

Military and veterans

If you or your child is now, or in the future, a member of the armed forces, we may release Medical Information about you as required by military command authorities. We may also release Medical Information about foreign military personnel to the appropriate foreign military authority.

Worker’s compensation

We may release Medical Information about you for worker’s compensation or similar programs. These programs provide benefits for work-related injuries or illnesses.

Public health risks

We may disclose Medical Information about you for public health activities. These activities may include, without limitation, the following:

Lawsuits and other legal actions

If you are involved in a lawsuit or a dispute, we may disclose Medical Information about you in response to a court or administrative order or your signed authorization that it is appropriate to do so.

Law enforcement

We may release Medical Information if asked to do so by a law enforcement official:

Coroners, medical examiners, and funeral directors

We may be required by law to release Medical Information to a coroner or medical examiner.

Inmates

If you are an inmate of a correctional institution or under the custody of a law enforcement official, we may release Medical Information about you to the correctional institution or law enforcement official. Disclosure may be made when required, as necessary to the administration of justice.

Protection of elective constitutional officers

We may disclose Medical Information about you to government law enforcement agencies as needed for the protection of federal and state elective constitutional officers and their families.

Your Rights Regarding Medical Information About You

You have the following rights regarding the Medical Information we maintain about you: (Note: the rights of a minor rest with the minor’s authorized representative. This is usually a county placement worker or a parent or the juvenile court but, in rare circumstances, may be the minor client if the client is emancipated or if the minor consented to his/her own treatment.)

Right To Inspect And Copy

You have the right to inspect and obtain a copy of Medical Information that may be used to make decisions about your care. Usually, this includes mental health and billing records.

To inspect and obtain a copy of Medical Information that may be used to make decisions about you, you must submit your request in writing. The request must be submitted to the Quality Improvement Department, Maryvale, 7600 E. Graves Ave., Rosemead, CA 91770. If you request a copy of the information, we may charge a fee for the costs of copying, mailing or other supplies associated with your request.

We may deny your request in certain limited circumstances. We may also ask you if a summary of your treatment could be provided to you in lieu of the complete record. If you are denied access to your information, you may request that the denial be reviewed. Another licensed health care professional chosen by Maryvale will review your request and the denial. The person conducting the review will not be the person who denied your first request. We will comply with the outcome of the review.

Right To Amend

If you feel that Medical Information we have about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask us to amend the information. You have the right to request an amendment for as long as the information is kept by or for Maryvale.

To request an amendment, you must submit your request in writing to the Quality Improvement Department, Maryvale, 7600 E. Graves Ave., Rosemead, CA 91770. In addition, you must provide a reason that supports your request.

We may deny your request for an amendment if it is not in writing or does not include a reason to support the request. In addition, we may deny your request if you ask us to amend information that:

Even if we deny your request for amendment, you have the right to submit a written addendum, not to exceed 250 words, with respect to any item or statement in your record you believe is incomplete or incorrect. If you clearly indicate in writing that you want the addendum to be made part of your record, we will attach it to your records and include it whenever we make a disclosure of the item or statement you believe to be incomplete or incorrect.

Right To An Accounting Of Disclosures

You have the right to request an “accounting of disclosures.” This is a list of the disclosures we made of Medical Information about you other than our own uses for treatment, payment and health care operations (as those functions are described above), and with other exceptions pursuant to the law.

To request this list or accounting of disclosures, you must submit your request in writing to Quality Improvement Department, Maryvale, 7600 E. Graves Ave., Rosemead, CA 91770. Your request must state a period of time. Your request should indicate in what form you want the list (for example, on paper, electronically). The first list you request within a 12-month period will be free. For additional lists, we may charge you for the costs of providing the list. We will notify you of the cost involved and you may choose to withdraw or modify your request at that time before any costs are incurred.

Breach

You have the right and Maryvale has a duty to notify you of a breach of your unsecured protected Medical Information. A breach means the acquisition, access, use, or disclosure of your unsecured protected Medical Information in a manner not permitted under HIPAA that compromises the security or privacy of your protected health information.

Right To Request Restrictions

You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the Medical Information we use or disclose about you for treatment, payment or health care operations. You also have the right to request a limit on the Medical Information we disclose about you to someone who is involved in your care or the payment for your care, like a family member or friend. For example, you could ask if we do not use or disclose information about the type of therapy you had.

We are not required to agree to your request, except to the extent that you request us to restrict disclosure to a health plan or insurer for payment or health care operations purposes if you, or someone else on your behalf (other than the health plan or insurer), has paid for the item or service out of pocket in full. If we do agree to the restriction, we will comply with your request unless the information is needed to provide you with emergency services.

To request restrictions, you must make your request by writing to the Quality Improvement Department, Maryvale, 7600 E. Graves Ave., Rosemead, CA 91770. In your request, you must tell us 1) what information you want to limit; 2) whether you want to limit our use, disclosure or both; and 3) to whom you want the limits to apply, for example, disclosures to your spouse.

Right To Request Confidential Communications

You have the right to request that we communicate with you about Medical Information in a certain way or at a certain location.  For example, you can ask that we only contact you at work or by mail.

To request confidential communication, you must make your request in writing to the Quality Improvement Department, Maryvale, 7600 E. Graves Ave., Rosemead, CA 91770. We will not ask you for the reason for your request. We will accommodate all reasonable requests. Your request must specify how or where you wish to be contacted.

Right To An Electronic Or Paper Copy Of This Notice

You have the right to an electronic or paper copy of this notice. You may ask us to give you a copy of this notice at any time. Even if you have agreed to receive this notice electronically, you are still entitled to a paper copy of this notice. To obtain a copy of this notice you may write to us at Quality Improvement Department, Maryvale, 7600 E. Graves Ave., Rosemead, CA 91770.

Changes To This Notice

We reserve the right to change this notice. We reserve the right to make the revised or changed notice effective for Medical Information we already have about you as well as any information we receive in the future. We will post a copy of the current notice at Maryvale sites.

The notice will contain the effective date on the first page, in the top right-hand corner. In addition, each time you register at or are admitted to Maryvale for treatment, we will offer you a copy of the current notice in effect.

Complaints

If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with Maryvale, with your referring party, the state, or with the secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services. To file a complaint with Maryvale, contact the Quality Improvement Department, at (626) 280-6510. All complaints must be submitted in writing to the Quality Improvement Department, Maryvale, 7600 E. Graves Ave., Rosemead, CA 91770. You will not be penalized for filing a complaint.

Other Uses Of Medical Information

Other uses and disclosures of Medical Information not covered by this notice or the laws that apply to us will be made only with your written permission. If you provide us with permission to use or disclose Medical Information about you, you may revoke that permission, in writing, at any time. If you revoke your permission, this will stop any further use or disclosure of your Medical Information for the purposes covered by your written authorization, except if we have already acted in reliance on your permission. You understand that we are unable to take back any disclosures we have made with your permission, and that we are required by law to retain our records of the care that we provided to you.

Contact

If you have any questions related to our HIPAA compliance policy, please contact the Quality Improvement Department at (626) 280-6510, or write to: Quality Improvement Department, Maryvale, 7600 E. Graves Ave., Rosemead, CA 91770.