Story Therapy

Story Therapy ("we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting your privacy and the privacy of your child. This page includes two parts: (1) our website privacy policy, and (2) our Notice of Privacy Practices required under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

Privacy Policy

Information We Collect

When you visit our website or contact us through it, we may collect:

• Contact information you voluntarily provide (name, email, phone number) through our contact form or email link

• Basic technical/automatically collected information such as your IP address, browser type, and pages visited, used to operate and improve the website

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How We Use Website Information

Information submitted through our website is used only to:

• Respond to your inquiries

• Schedule screenings, evaluations, or consultations

• Provide information about our services

We do not sell, rent, or lease your personal information to third parties.

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Cookies

Our website may use cookies to support basic site functionality and understand how visitors use the site. Cookies are small text files stored on your device; you can adjust your browser settings to decline cookies, though some site features may not function as intended if you do.

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Links to Other Sites

Our website may contain links to third-party sites, including our social media profiles. We are not responsible for the content or privacy practices of those external sites.

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Children Under 13

Our services are provided to children under the care and consent of their parents or legal guardians. We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children under 13 through our website itself.

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Right to Deletion

You may request that we delete personal information we hold about you that was submitted through our website (not including protected health information subject to HIPAA retention requirements — see below notice). We may be unable to fulfill deletion requests where retention is required to complete a service you requested, comply with a legal obligation, or as otherwise permitted by law.

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Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. Updates will be posted on this page with a revised "Last updated" date.

Notice of Privacy Practices (HIPAA)

This section describes how medical information about your child may be used and disclosed, and how you can get access to this information.

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Your Rights

When it comes to your child's health information, you have certain rights:

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Get a copy of health and treatment records

You can ask to see or get an electronic or paper copy of your child's medical record and other health information. We will provide a copy or summary, usually within 30 days, and may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee.

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Ask us to correct your child's record

You can ask us to correct information you believe is incorrect or incomplete. We may say no, but will explain why in writing within 60 days.

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Request confidential communications

You can ask us to contact you in a specific way or at a different address. We will accommodate all reasonable requests.

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Ask us to limit what we use or share

You can ask us not to share certain information for treatment, payment, or operations. We are not required to agree, except: if you pay out-of-pocket in full for a service, you can ask us not to share that information with your health insurer, and we will agree unless required by law to disclose it.

Get a list of disclosures

You can request an accounting of certain disclosures of your child's information made in the last six years. We provide one such accounting per year free of charge; additional requests within 12 months may incur a reasonable fee.

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Get a paper copy of this notice

You can request a paper copy of this notice at any time, even if you've agreed to receive it electronically.

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Choose someone to act on your behalf

If you are a parent, legal guardian, or hold medical power of attorney, you may exercise these rights on behalf of your child. We will verify this authority before acting on any request.

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File a complaint

If you believe your rights have been violated, you may contact us directly using the information below, or file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights: 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201 | 1-877-696-6775 | www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints/ We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

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Your Choices

For certain information, you have the right and choice to tell us to:

• Share information with family, close friends, or others involved in your child's care

• Share information in a disaster relief situation

If you are unable to state a preference, we may share information if we believe it is in your child's best interest, or to lessen a serious and imminent threat to health or safety.

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We will never share the following without your written permission:

• Information for marketing purposes

• Sale of your information

• Psychotherapy notes, in most cases

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How We Use and Share Health Information

We typically use or share health information to:

• Provide treatment — coordinating with other professionals involved in your child's care

• Run our practice — managing services, improving care, and contacting you as needed

• Bill for services — sharing information with insurers or other payers as needed to obtain payment

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We may also be required or permitted to share information, without additional authorization, in limited circumstances such as:

• Reporting suspected child abuse, neglect, or domestic violence, as required by Missouri law

• Preventing or reducing a serious threat to health or safety

• Complying with a court order, subpoena, or other legal process

• Responding to health oversight agency activities authorized by law

• As otherwise required by federal or state law

More detail on permitted uses and disclosures is available at: www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/consumers/index.html

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Our Responsibilities

• We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your child's protected health information (PHI).

• We will notify you promptly if a breach occurs that may have compromised your information.

• We must follow the practices described in this notice and provide you a copy of it.

• We will not use or share your information other than as described here without your written permission, which you may revoke at any time by notifying us in writing.

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Changes to This Notice

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