As a collector/user of personally identifiable information and protected health information, we take privacy very seriously. This information addresses two different items:
Personally identifiable information as part of using our website – “Website Privacy”
Protected health information as part of the software and denial management services Payer Watch supplies to healthcare providers – “HIPAA Privacy”
Website Privacy
Payer Watch (“us,” “we,” or “our”) operates the www.payerwatch.com website (the “Service”). The information provided below is to inform you regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of personal data when you use our service.
We use your data to provide and improve the Service. By using the Service, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy. Unless otherwise defined in this Privacy Policy, terms used in this Privacy Policy have the same meanings as in our Terms and Conditions, accessible from www.payerwatch.com.
Information Collection and Use
We collect several different types of information for various purposes to provide and improve our website Service to you.
Types of Data Collected – Personally Identifiable Data
While using our Service, we may ask you to provide us with certain personally identifiable information that can be used to contact or identify you (“Personal Data”). Personally, identifiable information may include, but is not limited to:
Email address
First name and last name
Phone number
Address, State, Province, ZIP/Postal code, City
Cookies and Usage Data
Usage Data
We may also collect information on how the Service is accessed and used (“Usage Data”). This Usage Data may include information such as your computer’s Internet Protocol address (e.g., IP address), browser type, browser version, the pages of our Service that you visit, the time and date of your visit, the time spent on those pages, unique device identifiers and other diagnostic data.
Tracking & Cookies Data
We use cookies and similar tracking technologies to track the activity on our Service and hold certain information.
Cookies are files with a small amount of data which may include an anonymous unique identifier. Cookies are sent to your browser from a website and stored on your device. Tracking technologies also used are beacons, tags, and scripts to collect and track information and to improve and analyze our Service.
You can instruct your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, if you do not accept cookies, you may not be able to use some portions of our Service.
Examples of Cookies we use:
Session Cookies. We use Session Cookies to operate our Service.
Preference Cookies. We use Preference Cookies to remember your preferences and various settings.
Security Cookies
We use Security Cookies for security purposes.
Use of Data
Payer Watch uses the collected data for various purposes:
To provide and maintain the Service
To notify you about changes to our Service
To allow you to participate in interactive features of our Service when you choose to do so
To provide customer care and support
To provide analysis or valuable information so that we can improve the Service
To monitor the usage of the Service
To detect, prevent and address technical issues
Transfer of Data
Your information, including Personal Data, may be transferred to — and maintained on — computers located outside of your state, province, country, or other governmental jurisdiction where the data protection laws may differ from those of your jurisdiction.
If you are located outside the United States and choose to provide information to us, please note that we transfer the data, including Personal Data, to the United States and process it there.
Your consent to this Privacy Policy followed by your submission of such information represents your agreement to that transfer.
Payer Watch will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy, and no transfer of your Personal Data will take place to an organization or a country unless there are adequate controls in place, including the security of your data and other personal information.
Disclosure of Personally Identifiable Information – Legal Requirements
Payer Watch may disclose your Data in the good faith belief that such action is necessary to:
To comply with a legal obligation
To protect and defend the rights or property of Payer Watch
To prevent or investigate possible wrongdoing in connection with the Service
To protect the personal safety of users of the Service or the public
To protect against legal liability
Security of Data
The security of your data is important to us, but remember that no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your Personal Data, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.’
Service Providers
We may employ third-party companies and individuals to facilitate our Service (“Service Providers”), to provide the Service on our behalf, perform Service-related services, or assist us in analyzing how our Service is used.
These third parties have access to your Personal Data only to perform these tasks on our behalf and are obligated not to disclose or use it for any other purpose.
Links to Other Sites
Our Service may contain links to other sites not operated by us. If you click on a third-party link, you will be directed to that third party’s site. We strongly advise you to review the Privacy Policy of every site you visit.
We have no control over and assume no responsibility for the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third-party sites or services.
Children’s Privacy
Our Service does not address anyone under 18 (“Children”).
We do not knowingly collect personally identifiable information from anyone under 18. If you are a parent or guardian and you are aware that your Children have provided us with Personal Data, please contact us. If we become aware that we have collected Personal Data from children without verification of parental consent, we take steps to remove that information from our servers.
HIPAA Privacy
As a business associate that provides software and denial management services to healthcare providers, we share a commitment with those healthcare providers (“Covered Entities”) to protect the privacy and confidentiality of Protected Health Information (PHI) that we obtain subject to the terms of a Business Associate Agreement.
This information is provided to help you better understand how we use, disclose, and protect PHI in accordance with the terms of Business Associate Agreements.
Definitions
Business Associate Agreement (BA Agreement). A formal written contract between Payer Watch and Appeal Masters – referred to herein as “Payer Watch” (formerly Intersect Healthcare, Inc. and Denial Research Group, Inc. dba AppealMasters) and a Covered Entity that requires Payer Watch to comply with specific requirements related to PHI.
Covered Entity. A health plan, healthcare provider, or healthcare clearinghouse must comply with the HIPAA Privacy Rule.
Protected Health Information (PHI). PHI includes all “individually identifiable health information” transmitted or maintained in any form or medium by a Covered Entity. Individually identifiable health information is any information that can be used to identify an individual, and that was created, used, or disclosed in (a) the course of providing a health care service such as diagnosis or treatment, or (b) in relation to the payment for the provision of health care services.
Use and Disclosure of PHI
We may use PHI for our management, administration, data aggregation, and legal obligations to the extent such use of PHI is permitted or required by the BA Agreement and not prohibited by law. We may use or disclose PHI on behalf of, or to provide services to, Covered Entities for purposes of fulfilling our service obligations to them if such use or disclosure of PHI is permitted or required by the BA Agreement and would not violate the Privacy Rule. Payer Watch is actively engaged in assisting providers with obtaining payment for the provision of health care services, and most disclosures of PHI are related to this.
In the event that PHI must be disclosed to a subcontractor or agent, we will ensure that the subcontractor or agent agrees to abide by the same restrictions and conditions that apply to us under the BA Agreement with respect to PHI, including the implementation of reasonable and appropriate safeguards.
We may also use PHI to report violations of law to appropriate federal and state authorities.
Safeguards
We use appropriate safeguards to prevent the use or disclosure of PHI other than as provided in the BA Agreement. We have implemented administrative, physical, and technical safeguards that reasonably and appropriately protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the electronic protected health information that we create, receive, maintain, or transmit on behalf of a Covered Entity. Such safeguards include:
Maintaining appropriate clearance procedures and providing supervision to assure that our workforce follows appropriate security procedures;
Providing appropriate training for our staff to assure that our staff complies with our security policies;
Making use of appropriate encryption when transmitting PHI over the Internet;
Utilizing appropriate storage, backup, disposal, and reuse procedures to protect PHI;
Utilizing appropriate authentication and access controls to safeguard PHI;
Utilizing appropriate security incident procedures and providing training to our staff sufficient to detect and analyze security incidents; and
Maintaining a current contingency plan and emergency access plan in case of an emergency to assure that the PHI we hold on behalf of a Covered Entity is available when needed.
Mitigation of Harm
In the event of a use or disclosure of PHI that is in violation of the requirements of the BA agreement, we will mitigate, to the extent practicable, any harmful effect resulting from the violation. Such mitigation will include:
Reporting any use or disclosure of PHI not provided for by the BA Agreement and any security incident of which we become aware to the Covered Entity; and
Documenting such disclosures of PHI and information related to such disclosures would be required for Covered Entity to respond to a request for an accounting of disclosure of PHI in accordance with HIPAA.
Access to PHI
As provided in the BA Agreement, we will make available to Covered Entities information necessary for Covered Entity to give individuals their rights of access, amendment, and accounting in accordance with HIPAA regulations.
Upon request, we will make our internal practices, books, and records, including policies and procedures, relating to the use and disclosure of PHI received from, or created or received by the BA on behalf of a Covered Entity available to the Covered Entity or the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for the purpose of determining compliance with the terms of the BA Agreement and HIPAA regulations.
Questions?
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us. Call (410) 252-4343 and ask to speak to the Compliance Officer.
