Website Privacy Policy

Information on our website

Our website provides information about our office, eye care services, and patient resources. It does not have patient accounts, contact forms, chat, newsletter subscriptions, or an embedded appointment scheduling system. You can browse without entering personal information. The website is not a channel for submitting medical records, symptoms, insurance documents, or payment information. Contact our office for an appropriate way to provide these details.

Cookies and tracking

Our website does not use cookies, analytics tools, advertising pixels, social media trackers, or session recording. We do not use third-party scripts, and our fonts are hosted with the website. The location map is a static image. Opening its directions link takes you to an external mapping service.

Technical information

The systems that deliver and protect the website may process technical information such as your IP address, browser type, requested pages, access times, and error or security events. Some of this information may identify a device or visitor. It may be used to operate the website, troubleshoot problems, and prevent misuse. This is separate from advertising or behavioral tracking.

Website service providers may process this information to supply hosting, delivery, maintenance, or security services. Information may also be disclosed as permitted or required by law to address fraud, security threats, or misuse. Any disclosure of PHI remains subject to applicable health privacy requirements.

No sale or rental of website information

We do not sell or rent information collected through this website or share it for third-party advertising or marketing.

Information used for patient care

When you contact or receive care from our office, we may collect contact, health, insurance, and payment information to schedule appointments, evaluate your eye health, provide treatment, coordinate referrals, order eyewear or contact lenses, bill for services, and maintain patient records. These activities are separate from browsing this informational website.

Children and privacy

Our website is intended for a general audience, including parents and guardians seeking information about pediatric eye care. It is not directed to children under 13 and does not invite them to submit personal information. Information provided for a child's care is handled under applicable health privacy laws. If you believe a child has provided information through a website-related service, contact our office so we can review and address the concern.

Your medical privacy rights

Our HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices explains how we may use and disclose protected health information, including for treatment, payment, and health care operations. It also describes uses that require authorization, our responsibilities, your rights, and how to make a privacy complaint. A copy is available at our office or on request by calling (210) 659-3937.

Subject to applicable legal requirements and exceptions, your rights include accessing your records, requesting corrections, requesting confidential communications or restrictions, and receiving an accounting of certain disclosures. Contact our office to make a request. We may need to verify your identity or authority before releasing records.

This website policy does not replace the HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices. Visiting our website does not authorize the release of your medical records or waive your privacy rights.

Communicating with our office

Call (210) 659-3937 for appointments, questions about your care, or instructions for sending records and other sensitive information. Ordinary email and text messages can carry privacy risks. Before sending medical information, insurance documents, or payment details electronically, ask our staff which communication method to use. You may also ask about confidential communication preferences.

The website does not monitor symptoms or provide emergency care. For a medical emergency, call 911 or seek emergency care.

Safeguards and record retention

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards appropriate to the information we handle. No electronic system or transmission method can be guaranteed completely secure. Information is retained as needed for its purpose and applicable recordkeeping, legal, and security requirements. Medical records are subject to separate retention obligations and may not be eligible for deletion on request.

Links to other websites

Links may take you to websites operated by other organizations, including mapping or patient service providers. Their privacy practices apply when you use their services. Review their policies before submitting information. Contact our office if you need help accessing a service without using an external website.

Policy updates and privacy questions

We will post revisions to this policy when our website or information practices change. An update to this policy does not replace any authorization required for the use or disclosure of protected health information.

For privacy questions, records requests, or a complaint, call our office and ask for the person responsible for patient privacy, or write to us at the address below. We will not retaliate against you for raising a privacy concern. You may also file a health privacy complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights at https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/filing-a-complaint/what-to-expect/index.html (opens in a new tab).