Uses and Disclosures of Substance Use Disorder Records: FHP may use and disclose Substance Use Disorder (SUD) treatment records that we create, maintain, receive, or transmit for the purposes described above and in accordance with federal law, including 42 CFR Part 2 and any Alaska laws requiring additional protections. In the event that no stricter requirements apply to the SUD records, FHP will still be required to use and disclose SUD records in compliance with HIPAA and other state and federal laws.

Uses and Disclosures of SUD Records that do not Require Written Consent: Despite the enhanced protections in place for SUD Records, certain disclosures of these records are still permissible without your written consent. Instances where we may disclose these records without your written consent include medical emergencies, child abuse and neglect, crimes that occur on FHP premises, certain court orders, internal communications, pursuant to Qualified Service Organization Agreements (QSOAs), and for certain audits and evaluations. Additionally, we may share certain de-identified data/data that doesn’t identify you as having an SUD for specific purposes like public health, for death investigations to medical examiners and coroners, and for scientific research.

Additional Protections for SUD Records: SUD records are subject to additional enhanced privacy protections under 42 CFR Part 2. In many situations, we may not use or disclose SUD information—even for purposes normally allowed under HIPAA such as treatment, payment, or healthcare operations—unless you provide written consent or another specific exception applies under federal law. If you provide written consent for us to use or disclose SUD records for treatment, payment, and health care operations to the same extent the HIPAA regulations permit, those uses and disclosures are provided for in this notice.  

• Treatment, Payment, Operations: We are required to obtain consent to use or disclose your SUD records even for the purposes of treatment, payment, and healthcare operations. 42 CFR Part 2 allows entities who create, maintain, receive, or transmit SUD Records to obtain a single consent for all treatment, payment, and operation purposes. If we disclose or receive SUD Records pursuant to such consent, those records may be further disclosed subject only to HIPAA except for the purpose of civil, criminal, administrative, or legislative proceedings against you without valid consent or a court order.
• Limitations on Use and Disclosure of SUD Records: SUD records cannot be used or disclosed in civil, criminal, administrative, or legislative proceedings against you without your written consent or a court order that meets strict requirements under federal law. This prohibition applies even if we did not create the SUD records but received them from another provider.  Records shall only be used or disclosed based on a court order after notice and an opportunity to be heard is provided to the patient or the holder of the record, where required by federal law. A court order authorizing use or disclosure must be accompanied by a subpoena or other similar legal mandate compelling disclosure before the record is used or disclosed.

Your Rights Specifically Concerning SUD Records

Right to Receive Notice of SUD Privacy Protections: You have the right to receive clear information about how your SUD records are protected, how they may be used or disclosed, and what your rights are under federal confidentiality laws. This Notice of Privacy Practices is intended to provide such notice for both HIPAA-protected health information, SUD records pursuant to 42 CFR Part 2, and other types of records that may have additional protection under federal or Alaska law. 

Right to Opt Out of Fundraising Communications: If we intend to use SUD information for fundraising communications, you will have the right to opt out before receiving such communications. We will provide a clear and conspicuous option to decline future fundraising contacts involving any SUD-related information. 

Our Additional Obligations Regarding Your SUD Records

• Notify you of how we will use and share your SUD records and of your rights regarding these records which are subject to additional federal privacy laws.
• Comply with additional duties and privacy practices described in this subsection of the notice.
• Maintain   the privacy and security of your information in accordance with more restrictive laws