Notice Of Privacy Policy (HIPAA)

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

Prostho Endo Dental Group is committed to protecting the privacy and security of your health information. We are required by law to maintain the privacy of your protected health information, provide you with this Notice of Privacy Practices, and follow the privacy practices described in this notice.

This notice applies to all locations, providers, team members, contractors, and business associates of Prostho Endo Dental Group who may use or access your health information to provide care, manage our practice, or support our dental services.

Our Locations:

North Bethesda, Maryland: 5904 Hubbard Drive, North Bethesda, MD 20852 | Phone/Text: (301) 377-8306
Vienna, Virginia: 311 Maple Ave W, Suite J, Vienna, VA 22180 | Phone/Text: (571) 669-4088

Email: hello@prostho-dent.com | Office Hours: Monday–Friday 6 AM–7 PM | Saturday–Sunday: By Appointment

1. Our Responsibilities

Prostho Endo Dental Group is required by law to:

Maintain the privacy and security of your protected health information
Provide you with this notice explaining our legal duties and privacy practices
Follow the terms of this notice
Notify you if a breach occurs that may have compromised the privacy or security of your information
Not use or share your information except as described in this notice or as permitted or required by law
Comply with applicable federal, state, district, county, and local privacy laws, including the HIPAA Privacy Rule (as amended), the HITECH Act, and applicable Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC privacy laws

Where Maryland, Virginia, Washington, DC, or other applicable law provides greater privacy protection than federal law, we will follow the law that provides the greater protection.

2. What Is Protected Health Information?

Protected health information (PHI) includes information that can identify you and relates to your past, present, or future health, dental condition, treatment, payment, or healthcare services. This may include:

Your name, address, phone number, email address, date of birth, or other identifying information
Dental and medical history
Dental images, X-rays, CBCT scans, intraoral scans, photographs, and digital impressions
Diagnosis and treatment records, treatment plans, and clinical notes
Insurance information, billing and payment information
Prescription information and lab records
Communications with you about your care
Information shared through patient forms, online scheduling, email, phone, text message, or patient communication systems

We may use and share your health information for treatment, payment, and healthcare operations.

Treatment

We may use and share your health information to provide, coordinate, or manage your dental care.

Payment

We may use and share your health information to bill and receive payment from you, your dental or medical insurance plan, a financing company, a membership plan, or another responsible party.

Healthcare Operations

We may use and share your health information to run our practice, improve care, train team members, conduct quality reviews, manage scheduling, communicate with patients, and operate our business.

We may also use or share your health information in the following situations when allowed or required by law.

Appointment Reminders and Care Communications

We may contact you by phone, voicemail, text message, email, mail, or patient communication system to remind you about appointments, follow up after treatment, provide care instructions, or discuss your dental care.

We may contact you about treatment options, preventive care, membership plans, technology, services, or other health-related benefits that may be of interest to you.

Family Members, Caregivers, or Others Involved in Your Care

We may share relevant health information with a family member, caregiver, personal representative, or other person involved in your care or payment for your care if you agree, if you do not object when given the opportunity, or if we reasonably believe it is in your best interest.

Minors and Personal Representatives

Parents, guardians, or legally authorized representatives may have access to a minor's health information as allowed by law. In some situations, minors may have privacy rights under federal, state, or local law.

Public Health and Safety

We may share health information for certain public health and safety purposes, such as preventing or controlling disease, reporting adverse reactions, or preventing a serious threat to health or safety.

Required by Law

We will share information when federal, state, district, county, or local law requires us to do so.

Business Associates

We may share health information with companies or individuals who help us operate our practice. These business associates are required to protect your information.

5. Uses and Disclosures That Require Your Written Authorization

We will not use or share your health information for the following purposes unless you give us written authorization, except as otherwise permitted or required by law:

Marketing communications that require authorization under HIPAA
Sale of your protected health information
Most uses and disclosures of psychotherapy notes, if we ever maintain them
Other uses and disclosures not described in this notice

If you give us written authorization, you may revoke it at any time by providing written notice.

We will not use your identifiable photos, videos, testimonials, reviews, case images, before-and-after images, or other identifiable health information for marketing, advertising, website content, social media, educational content, or promotional purposes without your written authorization when required by law. Your decision will not affect your ability to receive care from Prostho Endo Dental Group.

7. Substance Use Disorder Records

To the extent we create, receive, or maintain substance use disorder patient records protected by 42 CFR Part 2, we will follow the special privacy protections that apply to those records and will not use or share those records in civil, criminal, administrative, or legislative proceedings against you without your written consent or a court order and subpoena, unless otherwise permitted or required by law.

8. Reproductive Health Privacy (2024 HIPAA Update)

Consistent with the 2024 amendment to the HIPAA Privacy Rule, Prostho Endo Dental Group will not use or disclose your protected health information to identify, investigate, impose liability on, or take action against any person for seeking, obtaining, providing, or facilitating lawful reproductive health care.

This prohibition applies to disclosures to law enforcement, employers, family members, or any other person or entity when the purpose is to investigate or penalize a patient or provider in connection with lawful reproductive health care.

Before using or disclosing PHI that may relate to reproductive health care, we will obtain a signed attestation confirming that the request is not for a prohibited purpose, as required by law.

9. 21st Century Cures Act — Information Blocking

Prostho Endo Dental Group complies with the 21st Century Cures Act and its implementing regulations. We do not engage in information blocking. You have the right to timely electronic access to your health information, and we will not take actions designed to unreasonably delay, interfere with, or discourage your access to your own health information.

If you believe we have interfered with your access to your health information, you may report a concern to the HHS Office of Inspector General at oig.hhs.gov.

10. Genetic Information (GINA)

Genetic information is treated as protected health information under HIPAA. Consistent with the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA), we will not use genetic information for underwriting purposes or in any discriminatory manner. Genetic information includes information about your genetic tests, the genetic tests of your family members, and the manifestation of a disease or disorder in your family members.

11. Your Health Information Rights

You have the following rights regarding your protected health information:

Right to Get an Electronic or Paper Copy of Your Record

You may ask to see or receive an electronic or paper copy of your dental record and other health information we maintain about you. We will provide a copy or summary of your health information, usually within 30 days of your request. We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee as permitted by law.

Right to Ask Us to Correct Your Record

You may ask us to correct health information about you that you believe is incorrect or incomplete. We may deny your request in certain situations and will tell you why in writing.

Right to Request Confidential Communications

You may ask us to contact you in a specific way or at a specific location. We will agree to all reasonable requests.

You may ask us not to use or share certain health information for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations. We are not required to agree to your request, and we may deny it if it could affect your care. If you pay for a service out of pocket in full, you may ask us not to share that information with your health insurer for payment or healthcare operations.

Right to Get a List of Certain Disclosures

You may request an accounting of disclosures made during the six years before the date of your request. We will provide one accounting per year for free and may charge a reasonable fee for additional requests within 12 months.

Right to Get a Copy of This Notice

You may ask for a paper copy of this notice at any time, even if you agreed to receive it electronically.

Right to Choose Someone to Act for You

If you have given someone medical power of attorney, or if someone is your legal guardian or personal representative, that person may exercise your rights and make choices about your health information as allowed by law.

Right to File a Complaint

You may file a complaint if you believe your privacy rights have been violated. You may contact us directly or 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.

12. Dental Laboratories, Imaging, and Technology Partners

Because Prostho Endo Dental Group provides advanced dental care, we may share necessary health information with dental laboratories, imaging centers, software platforms, scanning systems, digital dentistry vendors, and technology partners involved in your care or our operations. This may include digital impressions, intraoral scans, CBCT scans, X-rays, smile design records, photos, treatment plans, lab prescriptions, restoration design information, and implant planning information. We share only the information reasonably needed for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations.

13. Breach Notification

We are required to notify you if there is a breach of unsecured protected health information that may have compromised the privacy or security of your information.

If a breach occurs, we will notify affected individuals within 60 days of discovering the breach, as required by federal law. Notification will be provided by first-class mail or, if you have agreed, by email or other electronic means.

For breaches involving 500 or more individuals in a state or jurisdiction, we will also notify the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and, in some cases, prominent media outlets in the affected area. The HHS Secretary maintains a public list of covered entity breaches affecting 500 or more individuals, which is posted at hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/administrative/breachnotificationrule/breachtool.html.

14. Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC Area Privacy Considerations

Prostho Endo Dental Group provides care to patients in Maryland, Virginia, and the Washington, DC area. We comply with applicable federal privacy laws, including HIPAA, and applicable Maryland, Virginia, Washington, DC, county, and local laws. If a state, district, county, or local law gives you greater privacy rights or places greater limits on our use or disclosure of your health information, we will follow the law that provides greater protection.

15. Communications by Phone, Text, Email, and Online Systems

Prostho Endo Dental Group may communicate with you through phone calls, voicemail, text messages, email, online forms, patient portals, scheduling platforms, or other communication systems for appointment reminders, treatment follow-up, insurance or billing questions, financial information, care coordination, patient forms, and general practice updates. Please tell us if you prefer a specific communication method or wish to restrict certain methods.

16. Complaints and Privacy Questions

If you have questions about this notice, want to exercise your privacy rights, or believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may contact us:

Prostho Endo Dental Group — Privacy Contact

North Bethesda, Maryland Phone/Text: (301) 377-8306
Email: admin@prostho-dent.com
Vienna, Virginia Phone/Text: (571) 669-4088
Maryland Office: 5904 Hubbard Drive, North Bethesda, MD 20852
Virginia Office: 311 Maple Ave W, Suite J, Vienna, VA 22180

You may also file a complaint with:

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights
200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201
Phone: 1-877-696-6775 | ocrportal.hhs.gov

We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

17. Changes to This Notice

We may change the terms of this notice at any time. The changes will apply to all health information we already have about you, as well as any information we receive in the future. The current notice will be available upon request in our office and on our website.

18. Acknowledgment of Receipt

We may ask you to sign an acknowledgment that you received this notice. Signing the acknowledgment does not mean that you agree to any special use or disclosure of your health information. It only confirms that you received the notice. If you choose not to sign, we will document our good-faith effort to provide you with this notice.

Policy Commitment

Prostho Endo Dental Group is committed to protecting your privacy while providing expert, patient-centered dental care.
We handle your health information with care, respect, and in accordance with applicable privacy laws.