Privacy Policy and HIPAA Notice
Smile Encinitas Dental Care

Our Website Privacy Policy

What we collect

When you use our website or contact us online, we may collect:

• Contact details you send us (name, phone, email) and appointment preferences.

• Form entries related to scheduling, questions, or new-patient intake.

• Technical data such as IP address, device/browser type, pages viewed, and cookies to help the site function and improve your experience.

• Third-party tools data from services that help us host the site, book visits, protect against spam, or measure traffic (for example, scheduling partners or analytics).

How we use it

We use this information to:

• respond to messages and schedule appointments,

• run and secure our website,

• improve services and user experience,

• send service messages, and (if you opt in) practice updates. We do not sell your personal information.

How we share it

We may share limited information with service providers (website host, security tools, scheduling/communication platforms) so they can perform services for us. We require these partners to protect your information and use it only for our purposes.

Note: Information you send through website forms may become part of your patient record if you become our patient. See our HIPAA NPP below for how we handle PHI.

Cookies & Analytics

Our site may use cookies and similar technologies to keep the site working and to understand which pages are helpful. You can control cookies in your browser settings. Disabling some cookies may affect site features.

Links To Other Sites

If our site links to another website (for directions, reviews, or online tools), that site’s privacy policy applies. We do not control the privacy practices of other companies.

HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices (NPP)

This section explains how we may use and share your Protected Health Information (PHI) and what rights you have. Federal law requires health care providers to give patients a notice like this and to follow it.

How we may use and disclose your PHI without a separate authorization

We may use or share your PHI for:

• Treatment — to diagnose and treat you, and to coordinate care with other dentists, specialists, labs, or pharmacies.

• Payment — to bill you or your plan, check eligibility, and get payment for services.

• Health care operations — to run our practice, quality checks, training, audits, and customer service.

• Business associates — companies that help us (for example, IT, billing, or storage) must protect your PHI under contracts with us.

• Appointment reminders & communications — reminders, test or visit follow-ups, or options related to your care.

• As required by law — public health and safety, abuse or neglect reporting, health oversight, law enforcement or court orders, workers’ compensation, and to prevent a serious threat to health or safety, when allowed by law.

For other uses (like most marketing or sharing notes not covered above), we will ask for your written authorization. You can withdraw that authorization at any time in writing.

Your Privacy Rights Under HIPAA

You have the right to:

• Access and get copies of your record (paper or electronic). We will tell you how to request it and any allowed fee.

• Ask for a correction if you think something is wrong or missing in your record.

• Get a list (“accounting”) of certain disclosures we made that were not for treatment, payment, or operations.

• Ask us to limit how we use/share your PHI for treatment, payment, or operations. We will consider your request and let you know if we can agree.

• Request confidential communications (for example, at a different address or by a different method). We will say yes when it is reasonable.

• Get a paper copy of this notice, even if you receive it online.

• File a complaint if you believe your privacy rights were violated—either with us or with the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS). You won’t be penalized for filing a complaint.

Who enforces HIPAA?

The HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces the HIPAA Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification Rules. (cms.gov)

Our Duties

We are required by law to:

• Maintain the privacy of your PHI,

• Tell you about our privacy practices and follow the terms of this notice,

• Notify you of certain breaches of unsecured PHI,

• Update this notice if our practices change.

Regulatory updates: Federal guidance is evolving (for example, OCR updates to privacy rules and NPP content timelines). We will update our practices and this notice as needed to stay compliant.

Special Notes For California Patients

California law may give you additional protections for certain types of sensitive information. When state law is more protective, we follow state law. (Ask our team if you have questions about a specific situation.)

Data Security

We use administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect your information. No system can be guaranteed 100% secure, but we work to reduce risk and train our team on privacy and security. If a breach of unsecured PHI happens, we will notify you as required by law.

Children’s Privacy Online

Our website is intended for adults. If we learn that we collected information online from a child under 13 without a parent or guardian, we will delete it.

Changes To This Page

We may update this page from time to time. The “Effective date” at the top shows the latest version. Significant changes will be posted here before they take effect.

Questions Or Requests?

To ask a question, request your record, update your information, or file a privacy complaint with our office, contact:

Privacy Officer

Smile Encinitas Dental Care (Dr. Dustin Deering)

Phone: 760-753-9036 (call during business hours)

To file a complaint with HHS OCR, visit the official OCR complaint portal or call the number listed on the HHS website. We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

If anything here is unclear, please call us. We’re happy to explain how we protect your privacy while caring for your smile.