Aplus Health Privacy Policy and Notice of Privacy Practices

Your Information. Your Rights. Our Responsibilities.

This notice describes how medical information about you may be used and disclosed by Aplus Health (www.aplus.health) and how you can get access to this information. Aplus Health (referred to as “we,” “us,” or “our”) is a telehealth provider offering services in primary care, weight loss, hormone replacement therapy, men's health, women's health, and general wellness. Please review it carefully.

 

Your Rights

You have the right to:

• Get a copy of your paper or electronic medical record.

• Correct your paper or electronic medical record.

• Request confidential communication.

• Ask us to limit the information we share.

• Get a list of those with whom we’ve shared your information.

• Get a copy of this privacy notice.

• Choose someone to act for you.

• File a complaint if you believe your privacy rights have been violated.

Your Choices

You have some choices in the way that we use and share information as we:

• Tell family and friends about your condition.

• Provide mental health care.

• Market our services and sell your information.

• Raise funds.

Our Uses and Disclosures

We may use and share your information in the following ways:

• Treat you.

• Run our organization.

• Bill for your services.

• Help with public health and safety issues.

• Do research.

• Comply with the law.

• Address workers’ compensation, law enforcement, and other government requests.

• Respond to lawsuits and legal actions.

Your Choices (Detailed)

For certain health information, you can tell us your choices about what we share. If you have a clear preference for how we share your information in the situations described below, let us know and we will follow your instructions.

In these cases, you have both the right and choice to tell us to:

• Share information with your family, close friends, or others involved in your care.

• Share information in a disaster relief situation.

• Include your information in a hospital directory.

If you are not able to tell us your preference (for example, if you are unconscious), we may go ahead and share your information if we believe it is in your best interest. We may also share your information when needed to lessen a serious and imminent threat to health or safety.

In these cases we never share your information unless you give us written permission:

• Marketing purposes.

• Sale of your information.

• Most sharing of psychotherapy notes.

Fundraising: We may contact you for fundraising efforts, but you can tell us not to contact you again.

Your Rights (Detailed)

When it comes to your health information, you have certain rights. This section explains your rights and some of our responsibilities to help you exercise them.

Get an electronic or paper copy of your medical record:
You can ask to see or get an electronic or paper copy of your medical record and other health information we have about you. Ask us how to do this. We will provide a copy or a summary of your health information, usually within 30 days of your request. We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee.

Ask us to correct your medical record:
You can ask us to correct health information about you that you think is incorrect or incomplete. Ask us how to do this. We may say “no” to your request, but we’ll tell you why in writing within 60 days.

Request confidential communications:
You can ask us to contact you in a specific way (for example, sending mail to a different address or calling only at home or only at the office). We will say “yes” to all reasonable requests.

Ask us to limit what we use or share:
You can ask us not to use or share certain health information for treatment, payment, or our operations. We are not required to agree to your request, and we may say “no” if it would affect your care.

If you pay for a service or health care item out-of-pocket in full, you can ask us not to share that information with your health insurer for the purpose of payment or our operations. We will say “yes” unless a law requires us to share that information.

Get a list of those with whom we’ve shared information:
You can ask for a list (accounting) of the times we’ve shared your health information for six years prior to the date you ask, including who we shared it with and why. We will include all the disclosures except for those about treatment, payment, and health care operations, and certain other disclosures (such as those you asked us to make). We’ll provide one accounting a year for free but will charge a reasonable, cost-based fee if you ask for another one within 12 months.

Get a copy of this privacy notice:
You can ask for a paper copy of this notice at any time, even if you have agreed to receive the notice electronically. We will provide you with a paper copy promptly.

Choose someone to act for you:
If you have given someone medical power of attorney or if someone is your legal guardian, that person can exercise your rights and make choices about your health information. We will make sure the person has this authority and can act for you before we take any action.

File a complaint if you feel your rights are violated:
You can complain if you feel we have violated your rights by contacting us (see Contact Information below). You can also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights by sending a letter to 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201, calling 1-877-696-6775, or visiting hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints. We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

Our Uses and Disclosures (Detailed)

How do we typically use or share your health information?
We typically use or share your health information in the following ways:

• Treat you: We can use your health information and share it with other professionals who are treating you. Example: A doctor treating you for an injury asks another doctor about your overall health condition.

• Run our organization: We can use and share your health information to run our practice, improve your care, and contact you when necessary. Example: We use health information about you to manage your treatment and services.

• Bill for your services: We can use and share your health information to bill and get payment from health plans or other entities. Example: We give information about you to your health insurance plan so it will pay for your services.

How else can we use or share your health information?
We are allowed or required to share your information in other ways – usually in ways that contribute to the public good, such as public health and research. We have to meet many conditions in the law before we can share your information for these purposes. For more information, see HHS.gov – Understanding HIPAA Privacy for Consumers.

• Help with public health and safety issues: We can share health information about you for certain situations such as:

  • Preventing disease.

  • Helping with product recalls.

  • Reporting adverse reactions to medications.

  • Reporting suspected abuse, neglect, or domestic violence.

  • Preventing or reducing a serious threat to anyone’s health or safety.

• Do research: We can use or share your information for health research.

• Comply with the law: We will share information about you if state or federal laws require it, including with the Department of Health and Human Services if it wants to see that we’re complying with federal privacy law.

• Respond to organ and tissue donation requests: We can share health information about you with organ procurement organizations.

• Work with a medical examiner or funeral director: We can share health information with a coroner, medical examiner, or funeral director when an individual dies.

• Address workers’ compensation, law enforcement, and other government requests: We can use or share health information about you for:

  • Workers’ compensation claims.

  • Law enforcement purposes or with a law enforcement official.

  • Health oversight activities (for example, for audits or investigations by health oversight agencies).

  • Special government functions such as military, national security, and presidential protective services.

• Respond to lawsuits and legal actions: We can share health information about you in response to a court or administrative order, or in response to a subpoena.

Our Responsibilities

We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your protected health information ("PHI"). We will let you know promptly if a breach occurs that may have compromised the privacy or security of your information. We must follow the duties and privacy practices described in this notice and give you a copy of it. We will not use or share your information other than as described here unless you give us written permission. If you do give us permission to use or share your information for a purpose not covered in this notice, you may change your mind at any time by letting us know in writing. (However, we cannot take back any uses or disclosures already made with your permission.) For more information, see HHS.gov – Notice of Privacy Practices.

SMS Privacy

We do not share, sell, rent, or disclose your phone number or SMS consent information to any third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes. Your phone number and SMS opt-in data are used solely to send the messages you have consented to receive. SMS message data, including opt-in status and opt-out requests, is stored securely and is never used for any purpose other than delivering the messaging services you requested.

For more information about SMS messaging rules, please review our SMS Terms

 

Privacy Information for California Residents

If you are a California resident, the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) provides you with certain additional rights regarding your personal information. The CCPA requires us to inform you about: (1) the purposes for which we use each category of “personal information” and “sensitive personal information” (as defined in the CCPA) that we collect; and (2) the categories of third parties to whom we disclose such information for a business purpose, share such information for cross-context behavioral advertising, or sell such information. (Under the CCPA, “sharing” means using personal information for targeted advertising based on a consumer’s activities across websites, and “selling” means disclosing personal information to third parties for monetary or other valuable consideration.) We may "share" some personal information to provide more relevant, tailored advertising regarding our services. Our use of third-party analytics and advertising partners may result in the sharing of online identifiers (e.g., cookie data, IP addresses, device identifiers, usage data) in a way that could be considered a "sale" under the CCPA.

Types of Third Parties to Which We Disclose Personal Information:

• Service providers ("SP")

• Our affiliates ("OA")

• Healthcare providers and services ("HCPS")

• Entities for legal and fraud prevention ("ELFP")

• Payment processors ("PP")

Purposes of Use of Personal Information:

• Provide and manage the services ("Provide")

• Analyze and improve the services ("Analyze")

• Advertising and marketing ("Advertise")

• Legal and compliance purposes ("Legal")

Categories of Personal (and Sensitive) Information We Collect (and To Whom We Disclose):

• Identifiers and contact information: e.g., name, address, email address, account names. Disclosed to: SP, OA, HCPS, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Advertise, Legal.

• Commercial and transactional information: e.g., information about purchases made. Disclosed to: SP, OA, HCPS, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Advertise, Legal.

• Financial information: e.g., credit card info (collected by payment processors). Disclosed to: PP, SP, OA, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Legal.

• Internet or other network or device activity: e.g., IP address, browsing history, app usage data. Disclosed to: SP, OA, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Advertise, Legal.

• General geolocation information: e.g., city, state, zip code. Disclosed to: SP, OA, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Advertise, Legal.

• Physical characteristics: e.g., photos and videos. Disclosed to: SP, OA. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Legal.

• User-generated content: e.g., information you post in forums or feedback. Disclosed to: SP, OA, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Legal.

• Customer service data: e.g., information you provide through our Care Team or support channels. Disclosed to: SP, OA, HCPS, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Legal.

• Health information: e.g., details about online visits or health data you provide. Disclosed to: SP, OA, HCPS, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Advertise, Legal.

• Information about sex life or sexual orientation: e.g., details related to men's or women's health services. Disclosed to: SP, OA, HCPS, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Advertise, Legal.

• Government-issued identification and numbers: e.g., Social Security number, driver's license. Disclosed to: SP, OA, HCPS, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Legal.

• Log-in credentials: e.g., username and password for your account. Disclosed to: SP, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Legal.

• Race/Ethnicity: e.g., information you may provide about your racial or ethnic background. Disclosed to: SP, OA, HCPS, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Legal.

• Contents of communications: e.g., messages or calls made via our services. Disclosed to: SP, OA, HCPS, ELFP. Purposes: Provide, Analyze, Legal.

Categories of Third Parties to Which We “Share” or “Sell” Personal Information (for Advertising/Analytics): We may share certain personal information with advertising partners to facilitate targeted advertising and analytics. However, we do not sell or share personal information from the following categories: Financial information, Physical characteristics, User-generated content, Customer service data, Government-issued IDs/numbers, Log-in credentials, Race/Ethnicity, or Contents of communications made via our services.

For more detailed information about how we use and disclose your personal information, please refer to the sections above in this Privacy Policy. Please note that if you opt out of certain uses of your information (as described below), we will honor that choice and not use your information for those purposes.

“Sharing” and “Selling” – Your Options: You have the right to opt out of our sale or sharing of your personal information for purposes of online advertising and analytics. You can do this by using our cookie management tool or by activating a legally-recognized browser-based opt-out signal (such as the Global Privacy Control), which we will honor to the extent required by law.

Additionally, we may hash and share your email address with advertising partners to deliver more relevant advertising. You can opt out of this by submitting a request through our website (for example, by filling out an opt-out form or contacting us directly).

We do not knowingly sell or share the personal information of consumers under 16 years of age.

We retain your personal information only as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected and processed, considering the nature and sensitivity of the information, potential risks from unauthorized use or disclosure, our legitimate business needs, and any applicable legal requirements.

Additional CCPA Rights:

• Incentives and Benefit Programs: We may offer certain programs or benefits that involve the collection of personal information (for example, discounts or rewards in exchange for signing up or providing information). If we offer such programs, they may be considered "financial incentives" under the CCPA. Participation is voluntary and you may withdraw at any time (e.g., by opting out of marketing emails). We will provide program terms at the time of offering and will explain how the value of your data is reasonably related to the incentive offered.

• Limit Use of Sensitive Personal Information: You have the right to direct us to limit the use or disclosure of your sensitive personal information (as defined by the CCPA) if it is used for purposes other than those allowed by the CCPA. For instance, you may opt out of receiving targeted advertising related to treatments or services you have received from Aplus Health. To exercise this right, you can use the opt-out methods provided (such as the "Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information" link on our website).

• Shine the Light Disclosure: California’s "Shine the Light" law allows residents to request information about how we share certain categories of personal information with third parties for their direct marketing purposes. However, we do not share your personal information with third parties for their own direct marketing purposes.

Changes to the Terms of this Notice

We reserve the right to change the terms of this Privacy Policy and Notice of Privacy Practices at any time. Changes will apply to all information we have about you. If we make material changes, the updated notice will be made available to you (for example, by posting the updated policy on our website and updating the effective date). This notice is effective as of March 1, 2024.

Contact Information

If you have any questions, concerns, or complaints about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us at lorraine@aplusrx.com