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Patient Rights

Your Rights as a Cedars-Sinai Patient

Your rights have a powerful and lasting effect on the quality of your care. Use the information here to take control of your healthcare treatment and experience.

Cedars-Sinai's Notice of Privacy Practices describes how your medical information is protected under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), under what conditions it may be disclosed, and how you can access this information.

If you have any questions about this notice, please call the Privacy Office at 310-423-7972, option 5.

Your patient rights: service

You have the right to:

  • Considerate and compassionate care in a comfortable environment. 
  • Respect for your personal values and beliefs.
  • Have a family member (or other person of your choosing) and your own physician quickly informed of your admission to the hospital.
  • Rational responses to any reasonable requests made for service.
  • Examine and receive an explanation of the hospital’s bill regardless of the source of payment.
  • Receive care in a safe setting, free from mental, physical, sexual or verbal abuse and neglect, exploitation or harassment. 
  • Access protective services and advocacy services including notifying government agencies of neglect or abuse.
  • Be free from restraints and seclusion of any form used as a means of coercion, discipline, convenience or retaliation by staff.
  • Exercise these rights without regard to sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, disability, medical condition, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identify, gender expression, educational background, economic status or the source of payment for care. Cedars-Sinai does not exclude, deny benefits to or otherwise discriminate against any person on these bases in admission to, participation in or receipt of the services and benefits under any of its programs and activities, whether carried out by Cedars-Sinai directly or through a contractor or any other entity with which Cedars-Sinai arranges to carry out its programs and activities. Inquiries, grievances or complaints related to this nondiscrimination policy may be directed to the Office of Patient Advocacy at 310-423-6217.

You have the right to:

  • Know the name of the physician who has primary responsibility for coordinating your care, as well as the names and professional relationships of other physicians and non-physicians who will see you.
  • Receive information about your health status, diagnosis, prognosis, course of treatment, prospects for recovery and outcomes of care (including unanticipated outcomes) in terms you can understand. 
  • Effective communication and to participate in the development and implementation of your plan of care.
  • Participate in ethical questions that arise in the course of your care, including issues of conflict resolution, withholding resuscitative services, and forgoing or withdrawing life-sustaining treatment.
  • Be advised if the hospital/personal physician proposes to engage in or perform human experimentation affecting your care or treatment. 
  • Refuse to participate in research projects.
  • Access information contained in your records within a reasonable time frame, except in certain circumstances specified by law.
  • Reasonable continuity of care and to know, in advance, the time and location of appointments as well as the identity of the persons providing the care.
  • Be informed of continuing healthcare requirements and options following discharge from the hospital, by the physician or a delegate of the physician. 
  • Be involved in the development and implementation of your discharge plan. Upon your request, a friend or family member may also be provided this information.
  • Know which hospital rules and policies apply to your conduct while a patient.
  • Know your physicians are licensed and regulated by the Medical Board of California. To check up on a license or to file a complaint go to www.mbc.ca.gov, email:licensecheck@mbc.ca.gov or call 800-633-2322.
  • Be informed the federal Physician Payments Sunshine Act requires that detailed information about payment and other payments of value worth over ten dollars ($10) from manufacturers of drugs, medical devices, and biologics to physicians and teaching hospitals be made available to the public. It can be found at https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov.

You have the right to:

  • Make decisions regarding medical care, and receive as much information about any proposed treatment or procedure as you may need in order to give informed consent or to refuse a course of treatment. Except in emergencies, this information shall include a description of the procedure or treatment, the medically significant risks involved, alternate courses of treatment or non-treatment and the risks involved in each, and the name of the person who will carry out the procedure or treatment.
  • Request or refuse treatment, to the extent permitted by law. However, you do not have the right to demand inappropriate or medically unnecessary treatment or services. 
  • Leave the hospital even against the advice of physicians, to the extent permitted by law.
  • Appropriate assessment and management of your pain, information about pain and pain relief measures, and to participate in pain management decisions. 
  • Request or reject the use of any or all modalities to relieve pain, including opiate medication, if you suffer from severe chronic intractable pain. The doctor may refuse to prescribe the opiate medication, but if so, must inform you that there are physicians who specialize in the treatment of severe chronic pain with methods that include the use of opiates.
  • Formulate advance directives. This includes designating a decision-maker if you become incapable of understanding a proposed treatment or become unable to communicate your wishes regarding care. Hospital staff and practitioners who provide care in the hospital shall comply with these directives. All patients’ rights apply to the person who has legal responsibility to make decisions regarding medical care on your behalf.
  • Designate visitors of your choosing, including whether or not the visitor is related by blood or marriage, family members, including those who are same-sex domestic partners/significant others, unless:
    • No visitors are allowed.
    • The facility reasonably determines that the presence of a particular visitor would endanger the health or safety of a patient, a member of the health facility staff or other visitor to the health facility, or would significantly disrupt the operations of the facility.
    • You have has told the health facility staff that you no longer want a particular person to visit.
    • Reasonable restrictions are placed upon visitation, including restrictions upon the hours of visitation and number of visitors.
    • Discrimination in visitation access based on sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression is prohibited.
  • Designate whether visitors have decision-making capacity, unless the facility reasonably determines that the presence of a particular visitor would endanger the health or safety of a patient, a member of the health facility staff or other visitor to the health facility, or would significantly disrupt the operations of the facility.
  • Have your wishes considered, if you lack decision-making capacity, for the purposes of determining who may visit. The method of that consideration will be disclosed in the hospital policy on visitation. At a minimum, the hospital shall include any persons living in the patient’s household, including any persons who plays a significant role in an individual’s life. This may include persons not legally related to the individual. Members of "family" include spouses, domestic partners, both different-sex and same-sex significant others, and a minor patient’s parents, regardless of the gender of either parent.
  • File a grievance. If you want to file a grievance with this hospital, you may do so by writing or calling the Quality Improvement Department, Cedars-Sinai, 8700 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90048, 310-423-6217. This department will review each grievance and provide you with a written response in a timely basis. Concerns regarding quality of care or premature discharge will also be referred to the appropriate Utilization and Quality Control Peer Review Organization.
  • File a complaint with the state Department of Public Health Services regardless of whether you use the hospital’s grievance process:

    Department of Public Health Services
    3400 Aerojet Ave. #323
    El Monte, CA 91731
    626-569-3724 or 800-228-1019

You have the right to:

  • Have personal privacy respected. Case discussion, consultation, examination and treatment are confidential and should be conducted discreetly. 
  • Be told the reason for the presence of any individual. 
  • Have visitors leave prior to an examination and when treatment issues are being discussed. A privacy curtain will be used in semi-private rooms.
  • Confidential treatment of all communications and records pertaining to your care and stay in the hospital. You will receive a separate "Notice of Privacy Practices" that explains your rights in detail and how we may use and disclose your protected health information.
Notice to Patients – Your Rights and Protections Against Surprise Medical Bills

Overview:

Certain federal and state laws provide patients with protections against surprise medical bills and balance billing.

If you have insurance and you receive emergency care from a hospital, physician or other clinical provider who is not in your health plan’s network, you have protections against bills in excess of the in-network rate. 

If you have insurance and receive in-network care at a Cedars-Sinai–licensed facility but some or part of the care is from a physician or other provider who is not in your network, you likely have additional protections, depending on your health plan.

If you receive emergency services at Cedars-Sinai and you are not insured, our policy is to provide financial assistance to patients whenever possible. We will reach out to you to discuss our financial assistance programs. If you are admitted, we will work to ensure that you understand your rights and financial options.

We want you to feel comfortable asking your physician if they are in or out of network and for clear information on your anticipated out-of-pocket costs.

What is the concern over surprise billing or balance billing?

There are a variety of situations where a patient will receive a bill that is not expected or understandable. Federal and California laws have been enacted to help protect patients from receiving care from providers they did not choose who are also not in the patient’s network and, therefore, whose services are not billed at the health plan’s in-network rate.

Emergency services and related care:

If you get emergency services from an out-of­network provider or facility, the most the provider or facility may bill you is your plan's in­network cost-sharing amount (such as copayments and coinsurance). You can't be balance billed for these emergency services. This includes services you may get after you're in stable condition, unless you give written consent and give up your protections to not be balanced billed for these post-stabilization services.

When Cedars-Sinai is in-network but a physician or other provider is not:

Cedars-Sinai contracts with many health plans. If we are contracted, you still may be seen by a physician or other licensed clinician who does not have a contract with your health plan. In these cases, the most those providers may bill you for is your plan's in-network cost-sharing amount. These providers can't balance bill you unless you give written consent to be billed at a higher out-of-network rate. The consent forms should clearly explain that consenting means you give up your protections. You should not feel pressured to enter into these consents. You should feel free to ask that provider questions about your expected out-of-pocket costs and to request from your insurance a referral to a provider who is in-network.

If you want to confirm whether Cedars-Sinai is an in-network provider under your health plan, please contact Customer Service: 1-866-803-1777 or 323-866-8600.

You're never required to give up your protections from balance billing. You also aren't required to get care out-of-network. Other than when you are taken to an emergency room, you can generally choose a provider or facility in your plan's network.

If you believe you've been wrongly billed or want additional information, you may contact any of the following:

  • The provider who sent you the bill. For bills from Cedars-Sinai, contact numbers will be on your bill.
  • Your health plan.
  • The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the federal agency overseeing these matters, has this informational site: www.cms.gov/nosurprises/consumers
  • CMS also offers the following hotline for complaints: 1-800-985-3059

Copies: If you would like an electronic or paper copy of this notice, please contact Customer Service: 1-866-803-1777 or 323-866-8600.

We strive to give you the highest quality of care at Cedars-Sinai. We can more easily reach this goal when you, your family and friends become our “partners in care.”

As part of your daily care, you can expect:

  • To be given thoughtful and respectful care without discrimination of any kind.
  • To be treated with respect for your cultural, mental and spiritual needs and choices.
  • To be cared for in a safe setting, free from mental, bodily, or verbal abuse or neglect.
  • To make choices about your care and be able to say “no” or ask for medically appropriate and necessary treatment.
  • To be introduced to your care team and  have your plan of care explained to you in simple language.
  • To be able to change your mind about the course of treatment.
  • To have a support person with you as well as guests of your own choosing. In rare cases, guests may not be allowed if their actions endanger the health or safety of a patient, other visitor or staff member, or if they disturb patient care or the operations of our facility.

As our partner in care, we expect you and your representatives:

  • To always act in a safe and responsible way and to know that physical violence or threats of hurting people will not be allowed.
  • To treat your caregivers and other patients and guests with dignity and respect.
  • To be respectful of the privacy, diversity, property and other rights of our staff and other patients.
  • To never use rude, intimidating, derogatory or sexually inappropriate comments.
  • To never behave in a disruptive manner, such as using loud or offensive speech, cursing, or verbally abusing our staff, guests and volunteers. 
  • To cooperate with your healthcare team when developing a treatment plan. 
  • To respect Cedars-Sinai’s property, policies, rules and regulations.

Please talk to your nurse or call Patient Advocacy at 310-423-6217 if you have any other questions.