Privacy

The South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority (PEBA) is committed to protecting the privacy of users of our website as well as the privacy of our members and subscribers.

Website users do not have to identify themselves to access information about the programs that PEBA offers; however, PEBA encourages individuals who participate in one or more of the benefits we administer to provide their email address, home address, and/or telephone number through our secure, online account access websites so PEBA can provide you with the latest news and updates about your benefits. Please be assured that PEBA will use your contact information only to support your relationship with our agency and the programs we administer and services we provide. PEBA will not provide your personal information to third parties for solicitation purposes.

If you have any questions, please contact PEBA’s Privacy Officer at 803.737.6800 or 888.260.9430.

HIPAA

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ensures security and privacy of health information by setting standards for access and distribution of that information. The South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority’s (PEBA’s) Notice of Privacy Practices, located at the first link below, outlines the various situations in which PEBA uses and discloses health information. It also outlines the member’s rights with regard to the information and disclosure.

Protected individual information statement

As recognized by the General Assembly, PEBA has a legitimate need to collect and use social security numbers and other personal identifying information from public employees that participate in the employee benefit programs it administers in order to operate those programs. See Section 30-2-300(2) of the South Carolina Code of Laws. Because this personal identifying information is necessary for the administration of these programs, participating public employees are not permitted to decline to provide the necessary personal identifying information or restrict the use of that information. The personal identifying information collected by PEBA is not used for any other purpose than the administration of those employee benefit programs and is kept confidential pursuant to the requirements of state and federal law, including the protections for PHI under HIPPA, HITECH, and related federal laws and the confidentiality provisions for retirement systems member records pursuant to Section 9-1-320 of the South Carolina Code of Laws and related statutes. For further information regarding the use of PHI collected by PEBA in connection with the administration of the state health insurance plans, please see the Notice of Privacy Practices in the HIPAA section above.

Non-discrimination notice

The South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority (PEBA) complies with applicable Federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex. PEBA does not exclude people or treat them differently because of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex. PEBA:

  • Provides free aids and services to people with disabilities to communicate effectively with us, such as:
    • Qualified sign language interpreters
    • Written information in other formats (large print, audio, accessible electronic formats, other formats)
  • Provides free language services to people whose primary language is not English, such as:
    • Qualified interpreters
    • Information written in other languages

If you need these services, contact PEBA's Privacy Officer.

If you believe that PEBA has failed to provide these services or discriminated in another way on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex, you can file a grievance with:  Privacy Officer, 202 Arbor Lake Dr., Columbia, SC 29223, 888.260.9430 or privacyofficer@peba.sc.gov. You can file a grievance in person or by mail, fax or email. If you need help filing a grievance, PEBA's Privacy Officer, is available to help you.

You can also file a civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights, electronically through the Office for Civil Rights Complaint Portal, available at https://ocrportal.hhs.gov/ocr/portal/lobby.jsf  or by mail or phone at:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue, SW
Room 509F, HHH Building
Washington, D.C. 20201
1.800.368.1019, 800.537.7697 (TDD)

Complaint forms are available at http://www.hhs.gov/civil-rights/filing-a-complaint/complaint-process/index.html 

Language Services

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注意事項:日本語を話される場合、無料の言語支援をご利用いただけます。1.888.260.9430まで、お電話にてご連絡ください。

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