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PRIVACY POLICY
Evansville Affirm Health & Wellness, a business of Indiana Exceptional Medical Care, LLC ("we," "us," or "our"), is committed to protecting your privacy and safeguarding your health information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and protect information when you visit our website at https://www.evansvilleaffirmhealth.com, request an appointment, contact our office, or receive our services.
This document is intended to describe our website privacy practices and serve as a working draft for our Notice of Privacy Practices under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). The final Notice of Privacy Practices should be reviewed and approved by qualified healthcare privacy counsel before publication and distribution to patients.
1. Information We Collect
1.1 Information You Provide
We may collect information that you provide directly to us, including:
• Name
• Date of birth
• Telephone or mobile number
• Email address
• Mailing address
• Insurance carrier and member identification number
• Appointment preferences and scheduling information
• Information about whether you are an existing or new patient
• Information you include in a contact or appointment-request message
• Health, treatment, or other information you provide when requesting or receiving care
• Communication and marketing preferences
Our online forms may ask for your first name, last name, date of birth, mobile number, email address, preferred appointment day or time, insurance information, and message or subject details.
Please do not submit emergency information through our website, ordinary text messages, or email. These channels are not continuously monitored and may not be secure.
1.2 Automatically Collected Information
When you visit our website, we may automatically collect information such as:
• IP address
• Browser type
• Operating system
• Device information
• Pages viewed and time spent on pages
• Referring and exit pages
• Approximate location information
• Website usage and diagnostic information
1.3 Cookies and Tracking Technologies
We may use cookies, web beacons, pixels, and similar technologies to operate our website, remember preferences, understand website traffic, improve our services, protect website security, and measure communications or advertising. You may manage cookies through your browser settings. Disabling cookies may affect some website features.
We will not use website tracking technologies in a manner that is inconsistent with HIPAA or other applicable law. Where a tracking technology may collect or disclose information that identifies a patient or relates to an individual’s healthcare, we will use it only after completing the required privacy and security review and taking any steps required by law.
2. How We Use Your Information
We may use the information we collect to:
• Schedule, confirm, and manage appointments
• Provide primary care, HIV testing and care, PrEP services, STI testing and treatment, gender-affirming hormone care, and related healthcare services
• Communicate with you about appointments, care coordination, billing, insurance, and service requests
• Respond to questions and provide patient support
• Process payments and insurance-related information
• Maintain patient, business, and healthcare records
• Improve our website, operations, and services
• Send health education, office updates, or promotional communications when permitted and consistent with your preferences
• Detect, investigate, and prevent fraud, misuse, security incidents, or other unlawful activity
• Comply with legal, regulatory, professional, and contractual obligations
• Protect the rights, safety, and property of our patients, staff, organization, and others.
3. HIPAA: Use and Disclosure of Protected Health Information
Protected Health Information (PHI) is individually identifiable health information that relates to your health condition, healthcare, or payment for healthcare. We may use and disclose PHI as permitted or required by HIPAA and other applicable law.
3.1 Treatment
We may use or disclose PHI to provide, coordinate, or manage your care. This may include sharing information with healthcare professionals, laboratories, pharmacies, referral providers, and other individuals or organizations involved in your treatment.
3.2 Payment
We may use or disclose PHI to obtain payment for healthcare services or fulfill our payment responsibilities. This may include communicating with health plans, insurers, billing services, payment processors, or other parties involved in payment.
3.3 Healthcare Operations
We may use or disclose PHI for healthcare operations, including quality assessment, patient safety, credentialing, training, compliance, auditing, care coordination, business planning, and activities necessary to operate our practice.
3.4 Other Permitted or Required Disclosures
We may use or disclose PHI when permitted or required by law, including for public-health activities, health oversight, judicial or administrative proceedings, law enforcement, workers’ compensation, disaster relief, research when legally authorized, and to prevent or lessen a serious and imminent threat to health or safety.
We may disclose PHI to business associates that perform services for us. Business associates are required to use appropriate safeguards and comply with applicable contractual and legal obligations.
3.5 Uses Requiring Your Authorization
Uses and disclosures of PHI not described in this Notice or otherwise permitted by law generally require your written authorization. You may revoke an authorization in writing as described in the authorization, except to the extent we have already relied on it.
4. Substance Use Disorder Records
If you receive services or records related to substance use disorder treatment, additional federal protections may apply under 42 CFR Part 2. When applicable, those records may not be disclosed without your written consent except in limited circumstances permitted by law. We will provide additional notices or consent forms when required.
5. How We Share Your Information
We may share personal information and, when permitted, PHI:
• With healthcare providers and other individuals involved in your treatment
• With laboratories, pharmacies, referral providers, and care-coordination partners
• With health plans, insurers, billing companies, and payment processors
• With scheduling, electronic health record, patient-portal, communications, hosting, and technology providers that support our operations
• With service providers that perform administrative, technical, compliance, or security functions for us
• When required or permitted by law
• To protect the rights, safety, and property of our patients, staff, practice, or others
• With your authorization or at your direction
We do not sell your personal information.
We do not sell, rent, or share mobile numbers, text-message opt-in data, or consent for third-party marketing or promotional purposes. Vendors that support our communications may process this information only as needed to provide those services and subject to appropriate confidentiality and security obligations.
6. Your Privacy Rights
Depending on the information involved and applicable law, you may have the right to:
• Inspect or obtain a copy of your medical records or other PHI
• Request an amendment or correction to your information
• Request restrictions on certain uses or disclosures of PHI
• Request confidential communications by an alternative method or at an alternative location
• Receive an accounting of certain disclosures of PHI
• Obtain a paper copy of this Notice upon request
• Withdraw a consent for promotional communications
We may deny or limit a request when permitted or required by law. If we deny a request, we will provide information about the reason for the denial and any review or complaint rights that apply.
To exercise these rights, contact our Privacy Officer using the information in Section 13. We may need to verify your identity before processing a request.
7. Your Privacy Choices
7.1 SMS and MMS Messages
If you provide your mobile number and consent to receive messages, we may send appointment reminders, scheduling updates, health-related office communications, limited service announcements, and promotional offers consistent with your recorded consent and applicable law.
Message frequency may vary. Standard message and data rates may apply. Delivery is not guaranteed, and carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages.
You may text STOP to unsubscribe from promotional messages or contact our office with a clear request to stop. You may text HELP for assistance. You do not need to submit a written request to withdraw consent. A general STOP request may also stop healthcare-related texts; contact our office if you need another communication method for appointment or care communications.
Promotional messaging is voluntary and is not a condition of receiving treatment or purchasing goods or services. Opting out of promotional messages will not affect your care.
7.2 Email Communications
You may unsubscribe from promotional emails by using the unsubscribe link in the email or by contacting our office. Essential healthcare, appointment, billing, account, or administrative emails may continue when permitted unless you request another communication method.
7.3 Cookies and Website Choices
You may disable cookies through your browser settings. Some website features may not work properly if cookies are disabled. If our website provides a privacy preference tool, you may use that tool to manage available choices.
7.4 Access, Update, or Delete Website Information
You may request access to or correction of personal information collected through our website by contacting us. Requests involving medical records or PHI will be handled under HIPAA and other applicable healthcare privacy requirements.
8. Security of Your Information
We maintain administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect personal information and PHI from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Texts and emails may not be fully secure. Other people who can access your device, account, or notifications may see them. We limit sensitive health information in ordinary messages and use appropriate channels for sensitive details. Do not send sensitive medical or financial information through ordinary text or email unless we specifically instruct you to do so.
9. Retention of Your Information
We retain personal information, PHI, and healthcare records for as long as necessary to provide care, operate our practice, complete transactions, comply with legal and professional obligations, resolve disputes, prevent fraud, maintain required records, and protect our rights and the rights of others. Retention periods may vary by record type and applicable law.
10. Third-Party Links and Services
Our website may contain links to third-party websites, patient portals, forms, payment services, social-media pages, or other resources. We are not responsible for the privacy or security practices of third parties. Please review the privacy notices and terms that apply to those services before submitting information.
11. Children’s Privacy
Our website is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 through the website. Healthcare services for minors, including the handling of their information, are governed by applicable law and our clinical and patient-record policies.
12. Urgent Concerns and Emergencies
Website forms, texts, email, and social-media messages are not continuously monitored and must not be used for emergencies. Call 911 for an emergency. For urgent healthcare concerns, call our office directly at 812-965-4730.
13. Privacy Contact and HIPAA Privacy Officer
If you have questions, concerns, want to exercise a privacy right, or wish to file a complaint, contact us:
Privacy Officer
Evansville Affirm Health & Wellness
A business of Indiana Exceptional Medical Care, LLC
4962 Lincoln Avenue
Evansville, Indiana 47715
Phone: 812-965-4730
You may also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights. We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.
14. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy and Notice of Privacy Practices from time to time. We will post the revised version on this page and update the “Last updated” date. If required by law, we will provide additional notice of material changes and distribute a revised Notice of Privacy Practices.