Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

We collect information about visitors through our website (“Site”), and therapists offering care through our Site (“Therapists”) collect information through our treatment platform (“Platform”), so that we and our Therapists can provide an experience that is responsive to our users’ and customers’ needs. We do not collect medical information or credit card information through our Site. Our Site may use forms in which you give us contact information (including your name, address, telephone number, and email address) so you can request information or support.

We will not sell, share, trade or otherwise disclose any identifiable information you provide to a third party except as discussed in Section 2 of this Privacy Policy or if you expressly provide in writing permission for such activities.

We will not sell, share, trade or otherwise disclose your medical information to a third party under any circumstances without your written permission. If you require access to your medical information, you must request it from us directly via a Medical Release form.

We may also collect non-identifiable information about you, such as information about your use of our Site, communication preferences, aggregated data relative to services provided to you, and responses to promotional offers and surveys. We may use or disclose aggregate information only where no individual is identified for a number of purposes, including: (a) compiling aggregate statistics of usage for improving the Site; (b) developing, maintaining and administering the Site; and (c) following up on comments and other messages that you submit to us through the Site.

2. Security

This Site has reasonable security measures in place that are aimed at protecting against the loss, misuse or alteration of the information under our control. We follow generally accepted standards to protect the personal information submitted to us, both during transmission and once we receive it. No method of transmission over the Internet, or method of electronic storage, is one hundred percent (100%) secure, however. Therefore, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

We may also at times provide information about you to third parties to provide various services on our behalf, such as providers who process credit card payments. We will only share information about you that is necessary for the third party to provide the requested service. We require these companies to agree not to retain, share, buy, sell, or use your identifiable information for purposes outside of assisting us to provide services to you.

3. Google Analytics & Cookies

We may use a tool called “Google Analytics” to collect information about use of this Site, such as how often users visit the Site, what pages they visit when they do so, and what other sites they used prior to coming to this Site. Google Analytics collects only the IP address assigned to you on the date you visit this Site, rather than your name or other identifying information.

Google Analytics plants a permanent cookie on your web browser to identify you as a unique user the next time you visit this Site. This cookie cannot be used by anyone but Google, Inc. The information generated by the cookie will be transmitted to and stored by Google on its servers.

We use the information received from Google Analytics only to improve services on this Site. We do not combine the information collected through the use of Google Analytics with personally identifiable information.

Google’s ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to this Site is restricted by the Google Privacy Policy http://www.google.com/policies/privacy. You can prevent Google Analytics from recognizing you on return visits to this Site by disabling the Google Analytics cookie on your browser.

4. Collection and Use of Personal Information of Children Under Age 13

We are committed to protecting the online privacy of children. In accordance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (”COPPA”), we will not knowingly collect any personally identifiable information from children under the age of thirteen (13) without first obtaining parental consent.

It is also our intention to adhere to the Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) Guidelines on Internet advertising with its special sensitivities regarding solicitations to children under thirteen (13). We encourage parents/guardians to supervise and join their children in exploring the Internet.

5. Transfer of Data Abroad

6. Compliance with Laws and Law Enforcement

We cooperate with government and law enforcement officials and private parties to enforce and comply with the law. We will disclose any information about you to government or law enforcement officials or private parties as we, in our sole discretion, believe necessary or appropriate to respond to claims and legal process (including without limitation subpoenas), to protect our property and rights or the property and rights of a third party, to protect the safety of the public or any person, or to prevent or stop activity we consider to be illegal or unethical.

To the extent we are legally permitted to do so, we will take reasonable steps to notify you in the event that we are required to provide your personal information to third parties as part of legal processes.

7. Changes in Our Practices

We reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy at any time. If we decide to change our Privacy Policy, we will post those changes to this Privacy Policy and any other places we deem appropriate, so that you are aware of what information we collect, how we use it, and under what circumstances, if any, we disclose it.

If we make material changes to this Policy, we will notify you here, by email, or by means of a notice on our home page, prior to the implementation of the changes.

8. Correcting, Updating and Removing Personal Information

You may alter, update or deactivate your account information or opt out of receiving communications from us at any time. You may send an email to info@mellahealth.com or you may send mail to MellaHealth LLC at:

MellaHealth LLC
125 LaSalle Rd, Suite 300
West Hartford, CT 06107

We will respond to your request for access or to modify or deactivate your information within forty-five (45) days.

9. Medical Privacy Notice

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.

A. Who Will Follow This Notice?

Therapists who provide services through the Platform (“Therapists”), our employees, and third parties who perform certain tasks related to the Platform or other services for us.

B. Your Medical Information

This Section refers to your “medical information”. This means all information that identifies you and relates to your past, present or future physical or mental health or condition including information about payment and billing for the health care services you receive.

C. Our Pledge Regarding Medical Information

We understand that your medical information is personal and we are committed to its protection. As such, we maintain reasonable information security procedures, including physical, electronic and procedural safeguards, to protect the confidentiality of your information. This notice applies to all your medical information that we maintain.

We are required by law to give you this notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to your medical information, to follow the terms of this Privacy Notice, and to notify you following a breach of the privacy or security of your unsecured medical information.

D. How We May Use and Disclose Medical Information About You

For each category of use and disclosure, we will try to give some examples, although not every use or disclosure in the category will be listed.

1. For treatment. Therapists may use your medical information in order to provide you with treatment or services. For example, a Therapist treating you may use your medical information to consult with another therapist.
2. For Payment. We may disclose your medical information so that treatment and services you receive may be billed by us to a third party. For example, your health plan may need to know about treatment you received so they will pay us for the services provided. We may also disclose your medical insurance information to obtain prior approval from your health plan.
3. For Healthcare Operations Purposes. We may use and disclose your medical information for our internal operations, such as business management, and administrative activities, legal and auditing functions, and insurance-related activities. We may use medical information to make sure that all of our patients receive quality care, such as reviewing our processes or to evaluate the performance of those caring for you. We may remove information that identifies you from this set of information so others may use it to study healthcare and healthcare delivery without learning a specific patient’s identity. Under certain circumstances, we may disclose your medical information for the health care operations of other health care providers.
4. Individuals Involved In Your Care or Payment of Your Care and Disaster Relief Organizations. We may release your medical information to a friend or family member who is involved in your medical care, or to someone who helped pay for your care. We may release your medical information to notify a family member, personal representative or another person responsible for your care of your location, general condition, or death. We also may release your medical information for certain disaster relief purposes. You will be provided the opportunity to provide your preference as to these disclosures. 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.
5. Treatment Alternatives and Other Health Related Benefits. We may contact you to provide appointment reminders, information about treatment alternatives, or other health related benefits and services that may be of interest to you.
6. Worker’s Compensation. We may release medical information about you for worker’s compensation or similar programs, which provide benefits for work related injuries or illnesses.
7. Mental Health Information. State laws may create specific requirements for the release of mental health records. We will obtain your specific authorization to release mental medical information when required by these laws.
8. Drug & Alcohol Treatment Records. Specific rules apply to the release of certain drug and alcohol program records, and we will obtain your specific authorization to release those records as required by federal regulations, such as 42 CFR Part 2.
9. Miscellaneous. We may use or disclose your medical information without your prior authorization for several other reasons. Subject to certain requirements, we may give out your medical information without prior authorization for public health purposes, abuse or neglect reporting, health oversight audits or inspections, certain health research studies and emergencies. We also may disclose medical information when required by law in response to a request from law enforcement in specific circumstances, for specialized government functions including correctional, military or national security purposes, in response to valid judicial or administrative orders or to avoid a serious health threat. Additional specific rules may apply to mental health records.
10. Other Disclosures. Other uses and disclosures not described above will be made only with your written authorization. For example, we require your signed authorization for uses and disclosure that constitute the sale of your medical information and for most uses and disclosures of psychotherapy notes. Additionally, we will not use or disclose your medical information for marketing purposes unless we have a signed authorization from you except that an authorization will not be required if (a) a communication occurs face-to-face; (b) consists of marketing gifts of nominal value; or (c) consists of a treatment or health care operations communication for which we do not receive financial remuneration from a third party. You may revoke your authorization at any time unless we have relied on your authorization or your authorization was required as a condition of obtaining health care services.

E. Your Rights Regarding Medical Information About You

1. Right to Inspect and Copy. In most cases you have the right to inspect or receive a copy of your medical information (or have a copy provided to an individual whom you designate) when you submit a written request. If your medical record is maintained electronically in a designated record set, you have the right to request a copy of the information in an electronic form and format. We may deny your request in certain circumstances. If you are denied access to your medical information, you may appeal.
2. Right to Amend. If you believe the information in your record is incorrect or incomplete, you have the right to request an addendum be added to your record by submitting a written request giving your reason. We may deny your request under certain circumstances. If we deny it, we may advise you in writing of the reason or explain your rights to submit a statement of explanation.
3. Right to an Accounting of Disclosure. You have the right to a list of those instances where we have disclosed your medical information other than for treatment, payment, healthcare operations, or where a disclosure was specifically authorized to persons involved in your care, and certain other limited situations. To request an accounting of disclosures, you must submit a written request to our Support Department.
4. Right to a Paper Copy of this Notice. If this notice was sent to you electronically you have a right to a paper copy of this notice. You may request that we send other communications of protected health information by alternative means, or to an alternative location. This request must be made in writing to the person listed below in Section 13. We are required to accommodate only reasonable requests. Please specify in your correspondence exactly how you want us to communicate with you; and if you are directing us to send it to a particular place, the contact/address information.
5. Right to Request Restrictions. You may request in writing that we not use or disclose your medical information except when specifically authorized by you, when required by law, or in an emergency. Except in the case of certain requests related to disclosures to health plans, we are not required by law to agree to your request, but we will consider the request. We will inform you of our decision.
6. Right to Request Confidential Communications. You may request to receive communications of medical information from us by alternative means or at alternative locations by notifying your Therapist or our Support Department. We will accommodate all reasonable requests.
7. Right to Request Restrictions on Disclosures to Health Plans. You may request in writing that we restrict disclosures of your medical information to a health plan for purposes of carrying out payment or healthcare operations if the disclosure is not required by law and the medical information pertains solely to a health care item or service for which you (or a person other than the health plan who is acting on your behalf) have paid us out of pocket and in full at the time of service. We must agree to a request that meets these requirements.

F. Changes to this Notice

We reserve the right to change this Section at any time. Changes will apply to medical information we already hold, as well as new information after the change occurs. We will post a copy of our current notice on our website at www.mellahealth.com

G. Complaints and Requests

If you have questions about this notice or want to talk about a problem without filing a formal complaint, please contact MellaHealth LLC at the following number: (860) 810-0587 or by email at info@mellahealth.com.

If you believe your privacy has been violated, you may file a complaint with our organization or with the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Information about how to file a complaint with the Department of Health and Human Services may be found at the following website: http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints/index.html. You will not be penalized for filing a complaint.

10. Contact Information

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, the practices of this Site or our services, your dealings with this Site or our services please contact us by email or regular mail at the following address:

MellaHealth LLC
125 LaSalle Rd, Suite 300
West Hartford, CT 06107
Phone: (860) 810-0587
info@mellahealth.com