Privacy Policy

At Herr-Era Mental Health, we are dedicated to safeguarding your privacy and keeping confidentiality, which includes protecting your health information. As mental health providers, we strongly adhere to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and all other applicable federal and state privacy laws. The Privacy Policy outlined below describes how we collect, use, disclose, and protect your personal information. By joining us for services and contacting us to begin therapy, you acknowledge and agree to this Privacy Policy:

How We Use Your Information:

• We never market or sell your personal information.

• All data collected about you via our forms and portals is for internal collection only, stored in HIPAA compliant programs, and only seen by the Herr-Era Team for their service to you at the practice.

• We will not ever share your mental health treatment records without your written consent, unless it is for treatment, or if another law requires us to share the information.

• Your personal information - name, contact details, date of birth, health history, treatment notes, diagnoses, medications, treatment plans, etc. - are stored for internal purposes only and never shared without your explicit consent, unless required to do so by law. To the extent that we have your patient records, we will not share that information for investigations or legal proceedings without (1) your written consent or (2) a court order and a subpoena.

• We collect credit card information, insurance information, and financial details strictly for billing purposes.

• To enhance user experience and website functionality, Squarespace or your search engine may collect information about your interactions with our website. We do not track individual user health data, nor do we use retargeting or remarketing tools that could compromise privacy. Herr-Era Mental Health will never use or disclose your health information for marketing purposes.

• Herr-Era Mental Health may use SMS text messaging for certain types of communication with you, including potentially for administrative issues, such as billing, or for health-related issues, such as care reminders. We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal information. Any information collected as part of our SMS or text messaging program, including mobile phone numbers, messaging consent, and opt-in data, is used solely for the purpose of providing the messaging services you have opted-in to receive. No mobile opt-in data or text messaging consent information will be shared, sold, rented, or disclosed to any third parties, except as required to deliver the messaging service or to comply with applicable laws.

How We Share Your Information:

• When treating you

  We can use your health information and share it with other professionals who are treating you. Information may be shared internally at Herr-Era Mental Health. Your information will never be shared outside of Herr-Era Mental Health without your explicit consent and a release of information.

Example: A doctor treating you for an injury asks another doctor about your overall health condition.

• When running Herr-Era Mental Health

  We can use and share your health information to run our practice, improve your care, and contact you when necessary.

Example: We use health information about you to manage your treatment and services.

• When billing you for services

  We can use and share your health information to bill and get payment from health plans or other entities.

Example: We give information about you to your health insurance plan so it will pay for your services.

Cookies and Other Links

• We use cookies for site functionality and aggregate analytics. Although disabling cookies may limit site functions, you will be prompted to limit their use and can disable cookies in your browser.

• You may also see links to other sites on our website. If you choose to follow those links and leave our site, we do not have control over those websites, their content, or your protection and privacy while visiting them. We recommend following up with their individual policies.

How else can we use or share your health information?

• We may use allowed or required to share your information in other ways – usually in ways that contribute to the public good, such as public health and research. We have to meet many conditions in the law before we can share your information for these purposes.

• In all cases, including those listed below, if we have patient records about you, we cannot use or share information in those records in civil, criminal, administrative, or legislative investigations or proceedings against you without (1) your consent or (2) a court order and a subpoena.

Subject to certain limitations in the law, we may use and disclose your health information without your authorization for the following reasons:

• When disclosure is required by state or federal law, and the use or disclosure complies with and is limited to the relevant requirements of such law.

• For public health activities, including reporting suspected child, elder, or dependent adult abuse, or preventing or reducing a serious threat to anyone’s health or safety.

• For health oversight activities, including audits and investigations.

• For judicial and administrative proceedings, including responding to a court or administrative order, although my preference is to obtain a Release of Information Authorization from you before doing so.

• For law enforcement purposes, including reporting crimes occurring on my premises.

• To coroners or medical examiners, when such individuals are performing duties authorized by law.

• For research purposes, including studying and comparing the mental health of patients who received one form of therapy versus those who received another form of therapy for the same condition.

• Specialized government functions, including, ensuring the proper execution of military missions; protecting the President of the United States; conducting intelligence or counter-intelligence operations; or, helping to ensure the safety of those working within or housed in correctional institutions.

• For workers’ compensation purposes. Although my preference is to obtain a Release of Information Authorization from you, I may provide your health information in order to comply with workers’ compensation laws.

• Appointment reminders and health related benefits or services. I may use and disclose your health information to contact you to remind you that you have an appointment with me. I may also use and disclose your health information to tell you about treatment alternatives, or other health care services or benefits that I offer.

Our Responsibilities

• We never market or sell your personal information. All data collected about you via our forms and portals is for internal collection only, stored in HIPAA compliant programs, and only seen by the Herr-Era Team for their service to you at the practice.

• We will not ever share your mental health treatment records without your written consent, unless it is for treatment, or if another law requires us to share the information.

• We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your protected health information.

• We will let you know promptly if a breach occurs that may have compromised the privacy or security of your information.

• We must follow the duties and privacy practices described in this notice and give you a copy of it

• In the unlikely breach of unsecured private health information, Herr-Era Mental Health will notify you as required by HIPAA and applicable state laws. We will provide details about the breach, how your information was affected, and what we are doing to address the issue.

• We will not use or share your information other than as described in this notice unless you tell us we can in writing. If you tell us we can, you may change your mind at any time. Let us know in writing if you change your mind.

For more information see: www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/consumers/noticepp.html.

Your Rights and Health Information

Receive summary of your medical record

•         Other than “psychotherapy notes,” you have the right to get an electronic or paper copy of your medical record and other information that we have about you.

•         We may provide a summary of your record within 30 days of receiving your written request and may charge a reasonable, cost based fee for doing so.

Ask us to correct your medical record an

•         You can ask us to correct health information about you that you think is incorrect or incomplete.

Request confidential communications

•         You can ask us to contact you in a specific way (for example, home, office, or cell phone) or to send mail to a different address.

Ask us to limit what we use or share

•         You can ask us not to use or share certain health information for treatment, payment, or our operations. We are not required to agree to your request, and we may say “no,” for example, if it could affect your care. If we agree to your request, we may still share this information in the event that you need emergency treatment.

Get a copy of this privacy notice

You can ask for a paper copy of this notice at any time, even if you have agreed to receive the notice electronically. We will provide you with a paper copy promptly.

Choose someone to act for you

•         If someone has authority to act as your personal representative, such as if someone has your medical power of attorney or if someone is your legal guardian, that person can exercise your rights and make choices about your health information.

•         We will make sure the person has this authority and can act for you before we take any action.

File a complaint if you feel your rights are violated

•         You can come to us if you feel we have not held true to our commitment to your rights.

•         You can file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights by sending a letter to 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201, calling 1-877-696-6775, or visiting https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/filing-a-complaint/index.html.

Reasonable Security

Please note this communication is conducted online, and no method of online contact can be guaranteed to be 100% secure. We at Herr-Era use reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect information collected through this site.

Changes to this Notice

We reserve the right to change the terms of this notice at any time. The new notice will be available upon request, on our website.

Effective: September 2026

Isabella M Herrera | Herr-Era Mental Health

For questions or concerns about our Privacy Policy, please call or text (305) - 419 -1303