PRIVACY POLICY

Notice of Privacy Practices
PelvRx, LLC.

THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.

PelvRx, LLC and its employees are dedicated to maintaining the privacy of your personal health information (PHI), as required by applicable federal and state laws. These laws require us to provide you with this Notice of Privacy Practices, and to inform you of your rights and our obligations concerning Protected Health Information, or PHI, which is information that identifies you and that relates to your physical or mental health condition. We are required to follow the privacy practices described below while this Notice is in effect.
Privacy Policy for SMS Communications

Introduction
Welcome to PelvRx, LLC. We are committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, use, and protect the information you provide to us through SMS communications, in compliance with Maryland's Consumer Privacy Act ("MCPA").

1. Information We Collect
We collect various types of information to provide and improve our services to you, including:

a. Personal Information

Collected Directly from You: We collect personal information, such as your name, email address, phone number, mailing address and other information you may provide when you:
1. Book an appointment through our Site or over the phone.
2. Fill out forms on our Site, including contact forms, intake forms, or newsletter sign-ups.
3. Interact with us via email, phone, SMS, or in person.

b. Health Information

Collected During Treatment: We collect health-related information necessary to provide physical therapy services, including your medical history, treatment plans, and notes from therapy sessions. This information may be collected during your visits, through online forms, or via communication with other healthcare providers involved in your care.

c. Payment Information

Collected During Transactions: We collect payment information, such as credit card details and billing addresses, when you pay for our services. This may be collected online, over the phone, or in person.

d. Technical Data

Automatically Collected: When you visit our Site, we automatically collect certain technical data, including:
1. IP Address: Your device’s Internet Protocol (IP) address.
2. Cookies: Information collected through cookies and similar technologies that track your interaction with our Site.
3. Device Information: Details about the device you use to access our Site, including browser type, operating system, and device identifiers.

e. Information Collected via SMS

Collected During SMS Communications: When you interact with us through SMS, we collect:
1. Your phone number and any personal information you choose to provide via SMS.
2. The content of the messages, including appointment requests, reminders, and other communications.
3. Metadata related to SMS, such as the time and date of messages.

2. How We Use Your Information
We use the information collected via SMS for the following purposes:

Appointment Management: To schedule, confirm, or remind you of appointments.
Communication: To respond to inquiries, provide updates, or notify you of any changes to our services.
Compliance and Legal Obligations: To maintain records as required by law and ensure compliance with relevant regulations.

3. Sharing Your Information

We do not sell or rent your personal information collected via SMS to third parties. We will not share information with:

Service Providers: Third-party vendors who provide SMS communication services or other support necessary for our operations.
Legal and Regulatory Authorities: If required by law, we may disclose your SMS information to comply with legal processes, government requests, or other regulatory obligations.

4. Your Rights Under MCPA
Under Maryland's Consumer Privacy Act, you have specific rights regarding your personal information collected via SMS. These include:

Right to Know: You have the right to request information about the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected from you via SMS.
Right to Access: You can request access to the personal information we have collected from you via SMS.
Right to Deletion: You have the right to request the deletion of your personal information collected via SMS, subject to legal and contractual obligations.
Right to Opt-Out: You may opt-out of receiving SMS communications from us at any time by replying "STOP" to any SMS message. Upon receiving your request, we will promptly remove your phone number from our SMS communication list.

5. Data Security
We take reasonable measures to protect the information we collect via SMS from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction. However, no method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

6. Changes to This Policy
We may update this SMS Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Effective Date." We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

7. Contact Us
If you have any questions or concerns about this SMS Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

PelvRx Physical Therapy
617 W Patrick Street, Frederick, MD 21701
(301) 828-2247
dryates@pelvrx.com
Effective Date: 04/24/2024

B. Permitted Disclosures of PHI.
We may disclose your PHI for the following reasons:

Treatment. We may disclose your PHI to a physician or other health care provider providing treatment to you. For example, we may disclose medical information about you to physicians, nurses, technicians, or personnel who are involved with the administration of your care.
Payment. We may disclose your PHI to bill and collect payment for the services we provide to you. For example, we may send a bill to you or to a third party payer for the rendering of services by us. The bill may contain information that identifies you, your diagnosis and procedures, and supplies used. We may need to disclose this information to insurance companies to establish insurance eligibility benefits for you.
Health Care Operations. We may disclose your PHI in connection with our health care operations. Health care operations include quality assessment activities, reviewing the competence or qualifications of health care professionals, evaluating provider performance, and other business operations. For example, we may use your PHI to evaluate the performance of the health care services you received. We may also provide your PHI to accountants, attorneys, consultants and others to make sure we comply with the laws that govern us.
Emergency Treatment. We may disclose your PHI if you require emergency treatment or are unable to communicate with us.
Family and Friends. We may disclose your PHI to a family member, friend, or any other person who you identify as being involved with your care or payment for care, unless you object.
Required by Law. We may disclose your PHI for law enforcement purposes and as required by state or federal law. For example, the law may require us to report instances of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence; to report certain injuries such as gunshot wounds; or to disclose PHI to assist law enforcement in locating a suspect, fugitive, material witness or missing person. We will inform you or your representative if we disclose your PHI because we believe you are a victim of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence, unless we determine that informing you or your representative would place you at risk. In addition, we must provide PHI to comply with an order in a legal or administrative proceeding. Finally, we may be required to provide PHI in response to a subpoena discovery request or other lawful process, but only if efforts have been made, by us or the requesting party, to contact you about the requestor to obtain an order to protect the requested PHI.
Serious Threat to Health or Safety. We may disclose your PHI if we believe it is necessary to avoid a serious threat to the health and safety of you or the public.
Public Health. We may disclose your PHI to public health or other authorities charged with preventing or controlling disease, injury or disability, or charged with collecting public health data.
Health Oversight Activities. We may disclose your PHI to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law. These activities include audits; civil, administrative, or criminal investigations or proceedings; inspections; licensure or disciplinary actions; or other activities necessary for oversight of the healthcare system, government programs and compliance with civil rights laws.
Research. We may disclose your PHI for certain research purposes, but only if we have protections and protocols in place to ensure the privacy of your PHI and get written permission from you.
Workers Compensation. We may disclose your PHI to comply with laws relating to workers compensation or other similar programs.
Specialized Government Activities. If you are active military or a veteran, we may disclose your PHI as required by military command authorities. We may also be required to disclose PHI to authorized federal officials for the conduct of intelligence or other national security activities.
Organ Donation. If you are an organ donor, or have not indicated that you do not wish to be a donor, we may disclose your PHI to organ procurement organizations to facilitate organ, eye, or tissue donation and transplantation.
Coroners, Medical Examiners, Funeral Directors. We may disclose your PHI to coroners or medical examiners for the purposes of identifying a deceased person or determining the cause of death, and to funeral directors as necessary to carry out their duties.
Disaster Relief.Unless you object, we may disclose your PHI to a governmental agency or private entity (such as FEMA or Red Cross) assisting with disaster relief efforts.

C. Disclosures Requiring Written Authorization.

Not Otherwise Permitted. In any other situation not described in Section A above, we may not disclose your PHI without your written authorization.
Psychotherapy Notes. We must receive your written authorization to disclose psychotherapy notes, except for certain treatment, payment, or health care operations activities.
Marketing and Sale of PHI. We must receive your written authorization for any disclosure of PHI for marketing purposes or for any disclosure which is a sale of PHI.

D. Your Rights.

Right to Receive a Paper Copy of This Notice. You have the right to receive a paper copy of this Notice upon request.
Right to Access PHI. You have the right to inspect and copy your PHI for as long as we maintain your medical record. You must make a written request for access to the Privacy/Compliance Officer at the address listed at the end of this Notice. We may charge you a reasonable fee for the processing of your request and the copying of your medical record pursuant to the Consumer Price Index (https://www.bls.gov/cpi/). In certain circumstances we may deny your request to access your PHI, and you may request that we reconsider our denial. Depending on the reason for the denial, another licensed health care professional chosen by us may review your request and the denial.
Right to Request Restrictions. You have the right to request a restriction on the use or disclosure of your PHI for the purpose of treatment, payment or health care operations, except for in the case of an emergency. You also have the right to request a restriction on the information we disclose to a family member or friend who is involved with your care or the payment of your care. However, we are not legally required to agree to such a restriction.
Right to Restrict Disclosure for Services Paid by You in Full. You have the right to restrict the disclosure of your PHI to a health plan if the PHI pertains to health care services for which you paid in full directly to us.
Right to Request Amendment. You have the right to request that we amend your PHI if you believe it is incorrect or incomplete, for as long as we maintain your medical record. We may deny your request to amend if (i) we did not create the PHI, (ii) it is not information that we maintain, (iii) it is not information that you are permitted to inspect or copy (such as psychotherapy notes), or (iv) we determine that the PHI is accurate and complete.
Right to an Accounting of Disclosures. You have the right to request an accounting of disclosures of PHI made by us (other than those made for treatment, payment or health care operations purposes) during the six years prior to the date of your request. You must make a written request for an accounting, specifying the time period for the accounting, to the Privacy/Compliance Officer at the address listed at the end of this Notice.
Right to Confidential Communications. You have the right to request that we communicate with you about your PHI by certain means or at certain locations. For example, you may specify that we call you only at your home phone number, and not at your work number. You must make a written request, specifying how and where we may contact you, to the Privacy/Compliance Officer at the address listed at the end of this Notice.
Right to Notice of Breach. You have the right to be notified if we or one of our business associates become aware of a breach of your unsecured PHI.

E. Changes to this Notice.
We reserve the right to change this Notice at any time in accordance with applicable law. Prior to a substantial change to this Notice related to the uses or disclosures of your PHI, your rights or our duties, we will revise and distribute this Notice.

F. Acknowledgment of Receipt of Notice.
We will ask you to sign an acknowledgment that you received this Notice.

G. Questions and Complaints.
If you would like more information about our privacy practices or have questions or concerns, please contact us. If you are concerned that we may have violated your privacy rights, or you disagree with a decision we made regarding the use, disclosure, or access to your PHI, you may complain to us by contacting the Privacy/Compliance Office at the address and phone number at the end of this Notice. You also may submit a written complaint to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. We will provide you with the address to file such a complaint upon request. We support your right to the privacy of your PHI. We will not retaliate in any way if you choose to file a complaint with us or with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Please direct any of your questions or complaints to:
Dr. Kelly Yates, Owner PelvRx, LLC
617 W Patrick Street
Frederick, MD 21701
301-828-2247
(This notice is also located on the PelvRx Physical Therapy website www.pelvrx.com/privacy)

This notice is effective April 24, 2024