System of Record Notice 09-15-0003

System number:  09-15-0003

System name:  Contract Physicians and Consultants, HHS/HRSA/BPHC.

Security classification:  None.

System location:
National Hansen’s Disease Program
1770 Physician’s Park Drive
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70816

Categories of individuals covered by the system:  Medical and allied health professionals (e.g., physicians, nurses, physical therapists, and dentists) who have contracted with the National Hansen’s Disease Program to provide services to beneficiaries.

Categories of records in the system:  Duplicate of original contract and personal data qualifications.  Original contracts developed by the National Hansen’s Disease Program.

Authority for maintenance of the system:  Section 320 of the Public Health Service Act, as amended (42 USC 247e), the National Hansen’s Disease Program; section 321 of the Public Health Service Act, as amended (42 USC 248), Control and Management of Hospitals; and section 326 of the Public Health Service Act, as amended (42 USC 253), Medical services to Coast Guard, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Public Health Service.

Purpose(s):  To monitor contract negotiations and compliance, to review credentials, and to collect statistical data required to manage the program.

Routine uses of records maintained in the system, including categories of users and the purposes of such uses:

1. Disclosure may be made to a congressional office from the record of an individual in response to a verified inquiry from the congressional office made at the written request of that individual.
2. In the event that a system of records maintained by this agency to carry out its functions indicates a violation or potential violation of law, whether civil, criminal or regulatory in nature, and whether arising by general statute or particular program statute, or by regulation, rule or order issued pursuant thereto, the relevant records in the system of records may be referred, as a routine use, to the appropriate agency, whether Federal, State or local, charged with the responsibility of investigating or prosecuting such violation or charged with enforcing or implementing the statute, or rule, regulation or order issued pursuant thereto.
3. Where a contract between a component of the Department and a labor organization recognized under E.O. 11491 provides that the agency will disclose personal records relevant to the organization’s mission, records in this system of records may be disclosed to such organization.
4. The Department may disclose information from this system of records to the Department of Justice, or to a court or other tribunal, when (a) HHS, or any component thereof; or (b) Any HHS employee in his or her official capacity; or (c) Any HHS employee in his or her individual capacity where the Department of Justice (or HHS, where it is authorized to do so) has agreed to represent the employee; or (d) The United States or any agency thereof where HHS determines that the litigation is likely to affect HHS or any of its components is a party to litigation or has an interest in such litigation, and HHS determines that the use of such records by the Department of Justice, the court or other tribunal is relevant and necessary to the litigation and would help in the effective representation of the governmental party, provided, however, that in each case, HHS determines that such disclosure is compatible with the purpose for which the records were collected.
5. Disclosure may be made to State Boards of Medical Examiners and to equivalent State licensing boards of professional review actions which adversely affect the clinical privileges of health care professionals who either:
   1. Are or were employed by the Federal Government;
   2. Provide or have provided health care service under a fee-for-service contract with the Federal Government; or
   3. Provide or have provided health care services on behalf of the Federal Government as a volunteer or as a visiting fellow.

Boards of Medical Examiners and equivalent State licensing boards are required by the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 and by the Medicare and Medicaid Patient and Program Protection Act of 1987 to report this information to the National Practitioner Data Bank.

6. To appropriate Federal agencies and Department contractors that have a need to know the information for the purpose of assisting the Department’s efforts to respond to a suspected or confirmed breach of the security or confidentiality of information maintained in this system of records, and the information disclosed is relevant and necessary for that assistance.

Policies and practices for storing, retrieving, accessing, retaining, and disposing of records in the system:

• Storage:  File folders.
• Retrievability:  Name and contract number.
• Safeguards:
  1. Authorized Users:  HHS medical and financial management staff and contracting personnel.
  2. Physical Safeguards:  All documents are protected during lunch hours and nonworking hours in locked file cabinets or locked storage areas.
  3. Procedural Safeguards:  All users of personal information in connection with the performance of their jobs protect information from public view and from unauthorized personnel entering an unsupervised office. Access to records is strictly limited to those staff members trained in accordance with DHHS Chapter 45-13 and Chapter PHS.hf: 45-13 of the General Administration Manual.

Retention and disposal:  Duplicate contracts:  Held 1-3 years dependent upon renewal. Destroyed per authority General Records Schedule 5 and 7.

Original Contracts:

1. Transactions of more than 10,000:  Destroy 6 years and 3 months after final payment.
2. Transactions of 10,000 or less:  Destroy 3 years after final payment.

System manager(s) and address:
Contracting Officer
National Hansen’s Disease Program
1770 Physician’s Park Drive
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70816

Notification procedure:  To determine if a record exists, write to the System Manager at the address above.  The individual must provide positive identification, such as driver’s license, passport, voter registration card, or written certification verifying his or her identity.  Requesters should also reasonably specify the record contents being sought.

Record access procedures:  Same as notification procedures.

Contesting record procedures:  Write to the System Manager at the address specified above, and reasonably identify the record, specify the information to be contested, and state the corrective action sought, with supporting justification.

Record source categories:  Medical, allied health professionals and dentists.

Systems exempted from certain provisions of the act:  None.