CAREPATH INJURY CENTERS
NOTICE OF PRIVACY PRACTICES
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.
Effective Date: March 1, 2024
Our Commitment to Your Privacy
Carepath Injury Centers is required by law to maintain the privacy of your protected health information (“PHI”), to provide you with this Notice describing our legal duties and privacy practices, and to follow the terms currently in effect. This Notice applies to all patients treated at any Carepath Injury Centers location, including patients receiving care for workers’ compensation claims, motor vehicle accidents, slip-and-fall injuries, acupuncture/chiropractic therapy, and injection procedures.
How We May Use and Disclose Your Health Information
The following categories describe the ways we may use and disclose your PHI without your written authorization.
Treatment
We may use and disclose your health information to provide, coordinate, or manage your care and related services. This includes sharing information among our physicians, physician assistants, therapists, and staff involved in your treatment, and coordinating with other providers such as your referring physician, imaging center, or specialist.
Payment
We may use and disclose your health information to obtain payment for services we provide. This includes submitting claims and supporting documentation to health insurers, workers’ compensation carriers, third-party liability insurers, attorneys and their representatives (with appropriate authorization or as permitted by law), and, when applicable, medical lien or funding companies.
Health Care Operations
We may use and disclose your health information for operations necessary to run our practice and ensure quality care, such as quality assessment, staff training, licensing, accreditation, and business planning.
Workers’ Compensation Claims
If your treatment relates to a workers’ compensation claim, we may disclose your PHI to your employer, the workers’ compensation carrier, attorney, claims adjusters, case managers, and state workers’ compensation agencies to the extent necessary to comply with applicable workers’ compensation laws, process your claim, and coordinate authorization for your care. State law governs the scope of these disclosures, and they may occur without your separate written authorization where permitted.
Personal Injury Claims (Motor Vehicle Accidents, Slip and Fall, etc.)
For injuries arising from motor vehicle accidents, slip-and-falls, or similar incidents, we may disclose relevant billing and treatment records to your personal injury attorney, the applicable liability insurance carrier, and any medical funding or lien company involved in your case — but only pursuant to a signed authorization, a valid subpoena, a court order, or as otherwise permitted or required by law. We will ask you to sign a separate authorization form for these disclosures where required.
Text Message (SMS) Communications
Carepath Injury Centers uses text messaging (SMS/MMS) to communicate with patients and other individuals who have provided consent.
You will automatically receive appointment reminders by text. If we have a mobile number for you, our system will send you text messages about your care — appointment confirmations, reminders, and related scheduling notices. These messages are sent automatically to all patients with a mobile number on file. You do not need to sign up, and we do not enroll patients individually.
You can stop these messages at any time by replying STOP to any text we send you. You do not need to call us, fill out a form, or give a reason. Once you reply STOP, we will not send you further text messages unless you ask us to start again.
Opting out will not affect your care in any way. If you stop text messages, we will continue to reach you about appointments and your treatment by phone call as needed.
We will not send you promotional or marketing text messages unless you separately and expressly opt in to receive them.
Types of messages. Messages may include appointment confirmations, reminders, and cancellations; intake and form links; arrival and check-in notices; care instructions and follow-up reminders; billing notifications and payment links; records or documentation requests; responses to questions you send us; and practice notices such as office closures or location changes. We do not send promotional or marketing text messages unless you have separately opted in to receive them.
Message frequency. Message frequency varies based on your care and your interactions with us.
Cost. Message and data rates may apply. Carepath does not charge for text messages; your wireless carrier’s standard rates apply.
How to opt out. Reply STOP to any message to cancel. You may also reply QUIT, END, CANCEL, UNSUBSCRIBE, or OPTOUT. You will receive one confirmation message, after which no further messages will be sent to that number unless you opt back in. If you opt out of text messaging, we will continue to contact you by phone as needed regarding your care.
How to get help. Contact us at 267-668-2908.
Delivery. Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages. Delivery depends on your wireless carrier and is not guaranteed.
How we handle your mobile information. No mobile information will be shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes. All other categories exclude text messaging originator opt-in data and consent; this information will not be shared with any third parties. We share mobile information only with vendors that support delivery of our messaging program — such as our patient communication platform, telecommunications provider, and electronic health record vendor — which are contractually restricted from using it for any other purpose and, where they handle PHI, are bound by a HIPAA Business Associate Agreement. We may also disclose mobile information where required by law or legal process.
Security. Standard SMS is not encrypted and is not a fully secure method of communication. By opting in, you acknowledge that messages may be viewed by others with access to your device or intercepted in transit. We limit the clinical detail included in text messages. You may request that we communicate with you by a protected, alternative method instead. Please notify us promptly if your mobile number changes.
Minors. Our text messaging program is not directed to individuals under 13. For patients who are minors, consent must be provided by a parent or legal guardian.
Email Communications
If you provide your email address, we may use it to respond to you and to send appointment, billing, and care-related messages. If we send you marketing or newsletter emails, every such message will include an unsubscribe link, and you may opt out at any time. Opting out of marketing email does not stop appointment, billing, or care-related messages.
Email is not a secure channel. Please do not send sensitive medical information by email.
Information We Collect Through Our Website
This section applies to information collected through our website at https://www.carepathinjury.com which is separate from the health information described above.
Information collected automatically. When you visit our website, our web servers and analytics provider automatically receive certain technical information, including your IP address, browser type and version, device type and operating system, the pages you view, the time and date of your visit, and the website or search that referred you.
Cookies and Website Analytics
A cookie is a small text file placed on your device by a website. We use cookies for two purposes only: to operate our website, and to measure website traffic through Google Analytics. The cookies set by Google Analytics allow us to distinguish one visitor from another and to understand how visitors move through the site so we can improve it.
We do not use advertising pixels, retargeting tags, social media tracking tools, session recording, or heat mapping software on our website.
Google Analytics 4 does not log or store visitor IP addresses. You can opt out of Google Analytics on any website by installing Google’s browser add-on, available at tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.
Most browsers let you refuse or delete cookies through their settings. Blocking cookies may affect how parts of the site function. We honor the Global Privacy Control (GPC) signal where your browser transmits it. Because browser Do Not Track signals are not standardized, we do not respond to them separately.
Service Providers
We share information with vendors that perform services for us — including website hosting, form processing, analytics, patient communication and messaging platforms, telephony, electronic health records, billing, records retrieval, and IT support. These vendors are contractually restricted to using the information only to provide services to us, and where they handle PHI, they are bound by a HIPAA Business Associate Agreement.
We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share your personal information with third parties for their own marketing purposes.
Data Retention and Security
Medical records are retained in accordance with Pennsylvania law and applicable federal requirements.
We maintain administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect information against unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction. Our website is served over an encrypted connection. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Children’s Privacy
Our website and text messaging program are not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 through the website. Information about minor patients collected as part of treatment is handled with parental or guardian consent.
Links to Other Websites
Our website may link to third-party websites, including insurers, imaging providers, payment processors, and informational resources. We do not control those sites and are not responsible for their content or privacy practices. Please review the privacy policy of any site you visit.
Your Choices
You may opt out of text messages by replying STOP; opt out of marketing email using the unsubscribe link in any such message; block or delete cookies through your browser settings; opt out of Google Analytics using Google’s browser add-on; and request access to, correction of, or deletion of information we hold about you by contacting us below.
Depending on your state of residence, you may have additional rights regarding personal information. We will not discriminate against you for exercising any privacy right.
Changes to This Notice
We may update this Notice from time to time. The current version will be posted on our website and available at our offices, with the effective date shown above. Your continued use of our website after an update constitutes acceptance of the revised Notice.