NOTICE OF PRIVACY PRACTICES
THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW HEALTH INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION.
PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.
THE PRIVACY OF YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION IS IMPORTANT TO US.
Effective Date: January 22, 2026
OUR LEGAL DUTY
We are required by applicable federal and state law to maintain the privacy of your health information. We are also required to give you this Notice about our privacy practices, our legal duties, and your rights concerning your medical information. We must follow the privacy practices that are described in this Notice while it is in effect. This Notice takes effect January 22, 2026, and will remain in effect unless we replace it.
We reserve the right, at any time, to change our privacy practices and the terms of this Notice at any time, provided such changes are permitted by applicable law. We reserve the right to make any change in our privacy practices and the new terms of our Notice applicable to all medical information we maintain, including health information we created or received before we made the changes in practices. We may amend the terms of this notice at any time. If we make a material change to our policy practices, we will provide you with the revised Notice. Any revised notice will be effective for all health information we maintain. The effective date of a revised Notice will be noted. A copy of the current notice in effect will be available in our facility and on our website. You may request a copy of the current notice at any time. We collect and maintain oral, written, and electronic information to administer our business and to provide products, services, and information of importance to our patients. We maintain physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards in the handling and maintenance of our patients medical information, in accordance with applicable state and federal standards, to protect against risks such as loss, destruction, and misuse.
For more information about our privacy practices, or for additional copies of this Notice, please contact us using the information listed at the end of this Notice.
USES AND DISCLOSURES OF HEALTH INFORMATION
We use and disclose health information about you for treatment, payment, and healthcare operations. For example:
Treatment: We may use or disclose your health information to a physician or other healthcare provider providing treatment to you.
Payment: We may use and disclose your health information to obtain payment for the services we provide you from your insurance plan.
Healthcare Operations: We may use and disclose your health information in connection with our healthcare operations. Healthcare operations include quality assessment and improvement activities, reviewing the competence or qualifications of healthcare professionals, evaluating practitioner and provider performance, conducting training programs, accreditation, certification, licensing, or credentialing activities, conducting or arranging for medical reviews, audits, and legal services, including fraud and abuse detection and prevention.
Your Authorization: In addition to our use of your health information for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations, you may give us written authorization to use your health information or to disclose it to anyone for any purpose. If you give us an authorization, you may revoke it in writing at any time. Your revocation will not affect any use or disclosures permitted by your authorization while it was in effect. Unless you give us a written authorization, we cannot use or disclose your health information for any reason except those described in this Notice.
To Your Family and Friends: We must disclose your health information to you, as described in the Patient Rights section of this Notice. We may disclose your health information to a family member, friend or other person to the extent necessary to help with healthcare or with payment for your healthcare, but only if you agree that we may do so.
Persons Involved in Care: We may use or disclose health information to notify or assist in the notification of (including identifying or locating) a family member, your personal representative, or another person responsible for your care, of your location, your general condition, or death. If you are present, then prior to use or disclosure of your health information, we will provide you with an opportunity to object to such uses or disclosures. In the event of our incapacity or emergency circumstances, we will disclose health information based on a determination using our professional judgement, only health information that is directly relevant to the person’s involvement in your healthcare. We will also use our professional judgment and our experience with common practice to make reasonable inferences of your best interest in allowing a person to pick up filled prescriptions, medical supplies, x-rays, or other similar forms of health information.
Marketing Health-Related Services: We will not use your health information for marketing communications without your written authorization.
Required By Law: We may disclose your health information when we are required to do so by law.
Abuse or Neglect: We may use your health information to appropriate authorities if we reasonably believe that you are a possible victim of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence or the possible victim of other crimes. We may disclose your health information to the extent necessary to avert a serious threat to your health or safety or the health or safety of others.
Special Protections for SUD Records: Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Treatment records have enhanced protections. They cannot be used in legal proceedings without your consent or court order.
If a use or disclosure of health information described above in this Notice is prohibited or materially limited by other laws that apply to us, we intend to meet the requirements of the more stringent law.
Business Associates: We may disclose your medical information to our business associates that perform functions on our behalf or provide us with services if the information is necessary for such functions or services. Our business associates are required, under contract with us, to protect the privacy of your information and are not allowed to use or disclose any information other than as specified in our contract.
Data Breach Notification Purposes: We may use your contact information to provide legally required notices of unauthorized acquisition, access, or disclosure of your health information.
Additional Restrictions on the use and disclosure: Certain federal and state laws may require special privacy protections that restrict the use and disclosure of certain health information, including highly confidential information about you. “Highly Confidential Information” may include confidential information under Federal Laws governing reproductive rights, alcohol and drug abuse information, and genetic information, as well as state laws that often protect the following types of information:
- HIV/ AIDS
- Mental Health
- Genetic Tests (in accordance with GINA 2009)
- Alcohol and drug abuse
- Sexually transmitted diseases and reproductive health information
- Child or adult abuse or neglect, including sexual assault
YOUR RIGHTS
- You have a right to see and get a copy of your health records
- You have a right to amend your health information
- You have a right to ask for an Accounting of disclosures of when and why your health information was shared for certain purposes
- You are entitled to receive a Notice of Privacy Practice that tells you how your health information may be used and shared
- You may decide if you want to give your authorization before your health information is used or shared for purposes.
- You have the right to receive your information confidentially and restrict certain communication methods
- You have the right to restrict who receives your information
- You have the right to request that an amendment be made to your health records by submitting the request in writing to our privacy officer. Your request does not guarantee an amendment but does guarantee that it will be reviewed and considered.
- If you believe your rights are being denied or your health information is not being protected, you can:
- File a complaint with your provider or health insurer
- File a complaint with the U. S. Government
COMPLAINTS:
If you are concerned that we may have violated your privacy rights, or you disagree with a decision we made about access to your medical information, about amending your medical information, about restricting our use or disclosure of your medical information, or about how we communicate with you about your medical information (including a breach notice communication), you may contact our Privacy Officer to register either a verbal or written complaint. You may also submit a written complaint to the Office of Civil Rights of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, 200 Independence Avenue, SW, Room 509F, Washington, DC, 20201. You may contact the Office for Civil Rights hotline at 1-800-368-1019. We support your right to the privacy of your medical information. We will not retaliate in any way if you choose to file a complaint with us or with the US Department of Health and Human Services.