Information may be used in a sale or merger of Aetna
Among the health care operations listed, Aetna may use and disclose personal information to help carry out a sale, transfer, merger or consolidation of all or part of Aetna with another entity, including due diligence related to that activity.
Supporting quotations
facilitation of a sale, transfer, merger or consolidation of all or part of Aetna with another entity (including due diligence related to such activity)
Qualifications & exceptions
It is listed under health care operations and is stated as something that may happen, not something that will.
It covers all or part of Aetna.
Not stated here
The notice does not say what protections or restrictions bind the other entity that receives information in such a transaction.
Sharing & Disclosure · Permission or license
Disclosure to providers who care for you
Aetna may disclose information to doctors, hospitals and other health care providers who take care of you. For example, doctors may request medical information from Aetna to supplement their own records, and Aetna may send certain information to doctors for patient safety or other treatment-related reasons.
Supporting quotations
Treatment: We may disclose information to doctors, hospitals and other health care providers who take care of you.
We also may send certain information to doctors for patient safety or other treatment-related reasons.
Qualifications & exceptions
Limited to providers who take care of you; 'may' makes it permissive.
'Other treatment-related reasons' is open-ended.
Not stated here
The notice does not say which information is sent for patient safety reasons.
Sharing & Disclosure · Permission or license
Disclosure to other covered entities and their business associates
Aetna may disclose personal information to other covered entities, or to business associates of those entities, for treatment, payment and certain health care operations purposes. For example, it may disclose information to government entities, if it has been arranged for it to do so, to help determine eligibility for state or federal benefit programs such as Medicaid.
Supporting quotations
Disclosures to Other Covered Entities: We may disclose personal information to other covered entities, or business associates of those entities for treatment, payment and certain health care operations purposes.
For example, we may disclose information to government entities, if it has been arranged for us to do so, in order to assist in determining eligibility for state or federal benefit programs such as Medicaid.
Qualifications & exceptions
Limited to treatment, payment and 'certain' health care operations purposes.
The government example applies only if it has been arranged for Aetna to do so.
Not stated here
The notice does not say which health care operations purposes count as 'certain' ones.
Sharing & Disclosure · Permission or license
'Aetna' means a group of affiliated entities that can share information
For this notice, 'Aetna' and 'we', 'us' and 'our' refer to all of the HMO and licensed insurer subsidiaries of Aetna Inc. These entities are designated as a single affiliated covered entity (the Aetna ACE) for federal privacy purposes. Members of the ACE can share Protected Health Information (PHI) with each other for the treatment, payment and health care operations of the ACE and as allowed by HIPAA and this notice. The full list of members is available by contacting the Aetna Privacy Office at PrivacyAetna@aetna.com.
Supporting quotations
For purposes of this notice, “Aetna” and the pronouns “we,” “us” and “our” refer to all of the HMO and licensed insurer subsidiaries of Aetna
Inc. These entities have been designated as a single affiliated covered entity for federal privacy purposes. The members of the Aetna ACE can share Protected Health Information (PHI) with each other. We do this for the treatment, payment and health care operations of the Aetna ACE and as allowed by HIPAA and this Notice.
For a full list of the members of the Aetna ACE, contact the Aetna Privacy Office at PrivacyAetna@aetna.com.
Qualifications & exceptions
The sharing among ACE members is limited to treatment, payment and health care operations of the ACE and what HIPAA and the notice allow.
The definition applies to HMO and licensed insurer subsidiaries, not to every Aetna Inc. affiliate.
Not stated here
The notice does not list the ACE members; the list must be requested from the Aetna Privacy Office.
Sharing & Disclosure · Permission or license
Disclosure to researchers
Aetna may disclose personal information in support of research, to researchers, provided measures are taken to protect your privacy. This is listed as one of the additional reasons for disclosure, separate from the health services research that the notice lists as a health care operation.
Supporting quotations
Research – to researchers, provided measures are taken to protect your privacy.
We also may disclose such information in support of:
Qualifications & exceptions
The condition is that measures are taken to protect your privacy.
'May' makes this a permission; the section lists it among reasons Aetna may disclose information without asking for authorization.
Not stated here
The notice does not say what privacy measures are taken, who the researchers are, or whether information is de-identified.
Sharing & Disclosure · Permission or license
Disclosure to business partners who provide services
Aetna may disclose personal information to persons who provide services to it and assure it they will protect the information.
Supporting quotations
Business Partners – to persons who provide services to us and assure us they will protect the information.
Qualifications & exceptions
Recipients are limited to persons who provide services to Aetna and who assure Aetna they will protect the information.
Not stated here
The notice does not say which kinds of service providers receive information, what the assurance consists of, or how it is enforced.
Sharing & Disclosure · Permission or license
Disclosure about deceased persons and for organ donation
Aetna may disclose information to a coroner or medical examiner to identify a deceased person, determine a cause of death, or as authorized by law, and to funeral directors as necessary to carry out their duties. It may also respond to organ donation groups to facilitate donation and transplantation.
Supporting quotations
Decedents – to a coroner or medical examiner for the purpose of identifying a deceased person, determining a cause of death, or as authorized by law; and to funeral directors as necessary to carry out their duties.
Organ Procurement – to respond to organ donation groups for the purpose of facilitating donation and transplantation.
Qualifications & exceptions
Funeral director disclosures are limited to what is necessary to carry out their duties.
Organ procurement disclosures are for facilitating donation and transplantation.
Sharing & Disclosure · Permission or license
Disclosure to a relative, friend or caregiver
Aetna may disclose health information to a relative, a friend, or any other person you identify, provided the information is directly relevant to that person's involvement with your health care or payment for it. For example, if a family member or caregiver calls with prior knowledge of a claim, Aetna may confirm whether the claim has been received and paid. You have the right to stop or limit this kind of disclosure by calling the toll-free hotline, 1-800-537-8521.
Supporting quotations
We may disclose health information about you to a relative, a friend, or any other person you identify, provided the information is directly relevant to that person’s involvement with your health care or payment for that care.
For example, if a family member or a caregiver calls us with prior knowledge of a claim, we may confirm whether or not the claim has been received and paid.
You have the right to stop or limit this kind of disclosure by calling our toll-free hotline at 1-800-537-8521.
Qualifications & exceptions
Limited to information directly relevant to the person's involvement with your care or payment.
The example involves a caller with prior knowledge of a claim and only confirms receipt and payment.
You can stop or limit the disclosure by calling the hotline.
Not stated here
The notice does not say how Aetna verifies a caller's relationship to you.
Sharing & Disclosure · Context
Recipients may redisclose information outside HIPAA protection
The notice warns that PHI disclosed as permitted by HIPAA may be redisclosed by the recipient and may no longer be protected by HIPAA.
Supporting quotations
PHI disclosed as permitted by HIPAA may be subject to redisclosure by the recipient and no longer protected by HIPAA.
Qualifications & exceptions
The warning concerns PHI disclosed as permitted by HIPAA.
'May be subject to' means redisclosure is possible, not certain.
Not stated here
The notice does not say which recipients are covered by HIPAA or what protections might still apply after redisclosure.