Privacy Policy

Effective Date: 08/03/2015; Updated 09/29/2021

1. INTRODUCTION. AmeriPharma (“us,” “we,” or “Company”) is committed to respecting the privacy rights of its customers, visitors, and other users of the Company Website (“the Site”) www.ameripharma.com. We created this Website Privacy Policy (“Privacy Policy”) to give you confidence as you visit and use the Site, and to demonstrate our commitment to fair information practices and the protection of privacy and describes how we use and disclose your information, including your protected health information (“PHI”) in accordance with the HIPAA Privacy Rule. It also describes your rights and our duties with respect to protected health information about you. This Privacy Policy is only applicable to the Site, and not to any other websites that you may be able to access from the Site, each of which may have data collection, storage, and use practices and policies that differ materially from this Privacy Policy.

2. INFORMATION COLLECTION PRACTICES 2.1. TYPES OF INFORMATION COLLECTED

(a) TRAFFIC DATA COLLECTED. AmeriPharma may collect the personally identifiable information that you give to us in connection with your general interactions with AmeriPharma. Personal information you provide may include:  Your name, home address, email address, and phone number and comments; Order history and preferences for services and product offerings; Employer name and work address; Financial information;  Social security number; Date of Birth; Payment information, such credit or debit card number or other payment method; Billing and shipping information; and Passwords.

(b) PERSONAL INFORMATION COLLECTED. We automatically track and collect the following categories of information when you visit our Site: (1) IP addresses, and general geographic location such as the city from which your computer or device is connecting to the internet; (2) Domain servers and operating systems; (3) Types of computers or devices accessing the Site; (4)  Activities while visiting the Sites and the content you access or view,  (5) Websites you visit prior to and after visiting the Sites, (6) Information regarding your Internet location when you see AmeriPharma’s ads and whether you click on such ads, (7) Information regarding your age, gender and interests with respect to products and services, and (8) Types of web browsers used to access the Site (collectively “Traffic Data”). For example, we may analyze how our Sites are used to: (1) Improve the browsing experience for the Sites; (2) Analyze the performance of the Sites and diagnose problems; (3) Administer the Sites; and (4) Carry out internal operations. Your non-personally identifiable information also may be used to analyze and develop advertisements and advertising campaigns that provide you with special offers and promotions and determine the effectiveness of the same.

  1. Traffic Data is anonymous information that does not personally identify you but is helpful for marketing purposes or for improving your experience on the Site. 
  2. We also use “cookies” to customize content specific to your interests, to ensure that you do not see the same advertisement repeatedly, and to store your password so you do not have to re-enter it each time you visit the Site.
  3. The Sites use Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc. (“Google”). Google Analytics uses cookies or other Collection Technology (as defined below) to collect and store anonymous information about you, which may include the non-personally identifiable information described above. You can read Google Analytics’ privacy policy at http://www.google.com/privacy.html and Google Analytics Terms of Use at http://www.google.com/analytics/terms/us.html. The Sites use these features of Google Analytics:
    1. “Demographics and Interest Reporting” to analyze information regarding the interests and demographics of users of the Sites. AmeriPharma uses such non-personal information in the same manner as other non-personal information as described below.
    2. “Remarketing with Google Analytics” to place ads on other sites directed to people who visited the Sites.
    3. “Google Display Network Impression Reporting” to report how people’s interactions with AmeriPharma’s ads relate to their visits to the Sites.
    4. You can opt-out from being tracked by Google Analytics in the future by downloading and installing Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on for your current web browser at http://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en 
    5. You can also opt-out of Google Analytics for Display Advertising and customize Google Display Network ads by changing the ad settings at: https://www.google.com/settings/ads?hl=en&sig=ACi0TCg6FJ9oPNrJcYucjz8l3tpXuteA9Nzc_SX4-UzHoJp7RNfvKqt0lf9Sd4Olvu9_xCQzYSjNSpTMqq9g78fn4RC-HwQ2ikwLzY092QC7TkzBTZdNAoR2i1ge-PQSXyaF4gRyvwvAh_2KE18CHvGRxlllvm5rAcRRFV2r-00Z_Ns2xmZ_4kILQCy8IJy3ywJ74dotSPY1GghDX-7aabjrroU54EJEcoj_tgVGTxoxPhdpJRisnra6olY5csj0A3JIqQXG44o0hTS67PZjSxhpF5cFCxyLlQ
    6. If you communicate with us by email, post messages to any of our chat groups, bulletin boards, or forums, or otherwise complete online forms, surveys, or contest entries, any information provided in such communication may be collected as Personal Information. Your authorization is always required for marketing purposes.
      1. AmeriPharma does not share, sell or rent any personal information that you provide to us under this Privacy Policy to third parties, except with your consent or as described in this Privacy Policy. 

2.2. USES OF INFORMATION COLLECTED

(a) COMPANY USE OF INFORMATION. We use Contact Data to send you information about our company or our products or services, or promotional material from some of our partners, or to contact you when necessary. We use your Financial Data to verify your qualifications for certain products or services and to bill you for products and services. We may also use your health information to obtain payment for certain products through this Site. This will include sending claims for payment to your insurance or third-party payer. It may also include providing health information to the payer to resolve issues of claim coverage. We use your Demographic Data to customize and tailor your experience on the Site, displaying content that we think you might be interested in and according to your preferences.

(b) SHARING OF PERSONAL INFORMATION. We share certain categories of information we collect from you in the ways described in this Privacy Policy. We share Demographic Data with advertisers and other third parties only on an aggregate (i.e., non-personally-identifiable) basis. We share Contact Data with other companies who may want to send you information about their products or services unless you have specifically requested that we not share Contact Data with such companies. We also share Contact Data and Financial Data with entities called Business Associates that perform some services for us that require access to your protected health, or other types of information such as hosting, billing, fulfillment, or data storage and security, related to our operation of the Site. An example may include companies that route claims to your insurance company, or that reconcile the payments we receive from your insurance. We require our Business Associates to safeguard any protected health information appropriately. Those business partners have all agreed to uphold the same standards of security and confidentiality that we have promised to you in this Privacy Policy, and they will only use your Contact Data and other Personal Information to carry out their specific business obligations to the Company. If you do not want us to share your Contact Data with any third parties, please email us at [email protected] or select the “opt out” box on our online forms, but please understand that such a request will likely limit your ability to take advantage of all of the features and services we offer on the Site. We may contact you for fundraising efforts, but you can request that we not contact you again in this regard.

Internally, our pharmacists, using their professional judgment, may disclose your protected health information to a family member, other relative, close personal friend, or other person you identify as being involved in your health care. This includes allowing such persons to pick up, or receive, filled prescriptions, medical supplies, or medical records on your behalf. In addition, we maintain a procedure for you to review and request changes to your Personal Information; this procedure is described in Section 3.1, below.

AmeriPharma also may use your non-personally identifiable information to present you with targeted content and advertisements (including on third party websites and apps) based on your past visits to the Sites and your non-personally identifiable information collected over time by us and third parties, optimize and determine the effectiveness of content and advertisements, analyze your interactions with the content and advertisements you are presented with, and how these interactions relate to your visits to the Sites.

AmeriPharma may combine information we collect from you with information available from other sources (such as offline records or publicly available information) and use the combined information for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy.

(c) REQUIRED DISCLOSURES AND RESTRICTION REQUESTS. You have a right to request a restriction be placed on the use and disclosure of your protected health information for purposes of carrying out treatment, payment or health care operations. Restrictions may include requests for not submitting claims to your insurance or third-party payer or limitations on which persons may be considered personal representatives. AmeriPharma is not required to accept restrictions other than payment related uses not required by law that have been paid in full by the individual or representative other than a health plan. If we do agree to requested restrictions, they shall be binding until you request that they be terminated. Requests for restrictions or termination of restrictions must be submitted in writing to us via contact information listed in the last section of this Notice.

Under certain circumstances, we may be required to disclose health information, as required or permitted by federal or state laws. These disclosures include, but are not limited to:

    1. To the Secretary of Health and Human Services for investigations into our compliance with HIPAA rules and to respond to patient complaints.
    2. To the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) relating to adverse events regarding drugs, foods, supplements and other health products or for post-marketing surveillance to enable product recalls, repairs or replacement.
    3. To public health or legal authorities charged with preventing or controlling disease, injury or disability, such as the Center for Disease Control (CDC).
    4. To law enforcement agencies as required by law or in response to a valid subpoena or other legal process.
    5. To health oversight agencies (e.g., licensing boards) for activities authorized by law such as audits, investigations and inspections necessary for Harpers Pharmacy’s licensure and for monitoring of health care systems.
    6. In response to a court order, administrative order, subpoena, discovery request or other lawful process by another person involved in a dispute involving a patient, but only if efforts have been made to tell the patient about the request or to obtain an order protecting the requested health information.
    7. As authorized by, and as necessary to comply with laws relating to Worker’s Compensation, or similar programs established by the law.
    8. Whenever otherwise required to do so by law.
    9. To a Coroner or Medical Examiner when necessary. Examples include: Identifying a deceased person or to determine a cause of death.
    10. To Funeral Directors to carry out their duties.
    11. To organ procurement organizations or other entities engaged in procurement, banking or transplantation of organs for the purpose of tissue donation and transplant.
    12. To notify or assist in notifying a family member, personal representative or another person responsible for the patient’s care of the patient’s location or general condition.
    13. To notify or assist in notifying a family member, personal representative or another person responsible for the patient’s care of the patient’s location or general condition.
    14. For certain research purposes.
    15. To a correctional institution or its agents if a patient is or becomes an inmate of such an institution when necessary for the patient’s health or the health and safety of others.
    16. When necessary to prevent a serious threat to the patient’s health and safety or the health and safety of the public or another person.
    17. As required by military command authorities when the patient is a member of the armed forces and to appropriate military authority about foreign military personnel.
    18. To authorized officials for intelligence, counterintelligence and other national security activities authorized by law.
    19. To authorized federal officials so they may provide protection to the president, other authorized persons or foreign heads of state or to conduct special investigations.
    20. To a government authority, such as social service or protective services agency, if AmeriPharma reasonably believes the patient to be a victim of abuse, neglect or domestic violence but only to the extent required by law, if the patient agrees to the disclosure or if the disclosure is allowed by law and we believe it is necessary to prevent serious harm to the patient or to someone else or the law enforcement or public official that is to receive the report represents that it is necessary and will not be used against the patient.
    21. During an emergency or disaster relief situation, if you are unconscious or unable to tell us your preference, we may share information to lessen a serious and imminent threat to health or safety.

We maintain full compliance with HIPAA, however there are also some states that may have laws more stringent than HIPAA. We will comply fully with any and all state-specific laws pertaining to the location you reside in.

(d) USER CHOICE REGARDING COLLECTION, USE, AND DISTRIBUTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION. You may choose not to provide us with any Personal Information. In such an event, you can still access and use much of the Site; however you will not be able to access and use those portions of the Site that require your Personal Information. Use or disclosure other than those previously listed or as permitted or required by law, will not be made unless we obtain your written Authorization in advance. You may revoke any such Authorization in writing at any time. Upon receipt of a revocation, we will cease using or disclosing protected health information about you unless we have already taken action based on your Authorization. If you do not wish to receive information and promotional material from us or from some of our partners, you may select the appropriate “opt-out” option each time we ask you for Personal Information.

3. CONFIDENTIALITY AND SECURITY OF PERSONAL INFORMATION. Except as otherwise provided in this Privacy Policy, we will keep your Personal Information private and will not share it with third parties, unless such disclosure is necessary to: (a) comply with a court order or other legal process; (b) protect our rights or property; or (c) enforce our Terms of Service. Your Personal Information is stored on secure servers that are not accessible by third parties. We provide you with the capability to transmit your Personal Information via secured and encrypted channels if you use a similarly equipped web browser.

3.1. USER ABILITY TO ACCESS, UPDATE, AND CORRECT PERSONAL INFORMATION. We maintain a procedure in order to help you confirm that your Personal Information remains correct and up-to-date, which includes an accounting of uses and disclosures that are not for treatment, payment, or health care operations. This accounting may include up to the six years prior to the date of the request, and will not include an accounting of disclosures to yourself, your personal representatives, or anything authorized by you in writing.

At any time, you may contact us at www.ameripharma.com/contact-us to access your personal profile. Through your personal profile you may: (a) review and update your Personal Information that we have already collected; (b) choose whether or not you wish us to send you information about our company, or promotional material from some of our partners; and/or (c) choose whether or not you wish for us to share your Personal Information with third parties.

You have a right to inspect and copy your protected health information. The designated record set will usually include prescription and billing records. You have a right to request the protected health information in the designated record set for as long as we maintain your records. You have a right to have requested records provided to you in a timely fashion. You also have the right to request that your protected health information be provided to you in your preferred format, including electronically, if available. You have the right to have your information disclosed to another person or third-party that you choose. Requests may be submitted in writing to us in writing. Any costs or fees associated with copying, mailing or preparing the requested records will be charged prior to granting your request, as described below. We may deny your request for records in limited circumstances. In case of denial, you may request a review of the denial for most reasons. Requests for review of a denial must also be submitted to us in writing.

If you believe that your protected health information is incomplete or incorrect, you may request an amendment to any of your records for as long as we maintain your records. Requests must be submitted in writing to us. This request must include a reason that supports your request for amendments to your records. We have the right to deny an amendment to your records in certain cases. In case of a denial of amendment, you have the right to submit a Statement of Disagreement. We have a right to provide a rebuttal to your statement.

Other restrictions may apply as required in this Notice. Requests for accounting must be submitted to us in writing, via the contact information listed below. The first accounting in any 12-month period will be provided to you at no cost. Any additional requests within the same 12-month period will be charged a fee to cover the cost of providing the accounting. This fee amount will be provided to you prior to completing the request and will be pursuant to the costs allowed by California state law. You may choose to withdraw your request upon receiving notice of this cost, in order to avoid paying this fee.

3.2. LOST OR STOLEN INFORMATION. You must promptly notify us if your credit card, user name, or password is lost, stolen, or used without permission. In such an event, we will remove that credit card number, user name, or password from your account and update our records accordingly.

3.3. PUBLIC INFORMATION. The Site contains links to other websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or the content of such websites. We also make chat rooms, forums, message boards, and news groups available to you. Please understand that any information that is disclosed in these areas becomes public information. We have no control over its use and you should exercise caution when deciding to disclose your Personal Information.

3.4 PROTECTED HEALTH INFORMATION. We will use your health information to provide treatment. This may involve receiving or sharing information with other health care providers such as your physician. This information may be written, verbal, electronic, or via facsimile. This will include receiving prescription orders so that we may dispense prescription medications. We may also share information with other health care providers who are treating you to coordinate the different things you need, such as medications, lab work, or other appointments. We may also contact you to provide treatment-related services, such as refill reminders, treatment alternatives, and other health related services that may be of benefit to you. We will use your health information for our health care operations necessary to run the pharmacy. This may include monitoring the quality of care that our employees provide to you and for training purposes.

4. UPDATES AND CHANGES TO PRIVACY POLICY. We reserve the right, at any time and without notice, to add to, change, update, or modify this Privacy Policy, simply by posting such change, update, or modification on the Site and without any other notice to you, and to make the new Notice provisions effective for all protected health information that we maintain. Any such change, update, or modification will be effective immediately upon posting on the Site and will be made available upon request, either by receiving a copy of this notice electronically or by requesting a physical copy of this request by contacting us. You have a right to receive a paper copy of this Notice, even if you previously agreed to receive a copy electronically. You have a right to request a revised or updated copy of this notice. If you would like to receive a paper copy of this notice, please submit a request to us using our contact information below.

Privacy Notice

This privacy notice discloses the privacy practices for www.ameripharma.com. This privacy notice applies solely to information collected by this web site. It will notify you of the following:

  1. What personally identifiable information is collected from you through the web site, how it is used and with whom it may be shared.
  2. What choices are available to you regarding the use of your data.
  3. The security procedures in place to protect the misuse of your information.
  4. How you can correct any inaccuracies in the information.

Information Collection, Use, and Sharing

We are the sole owners of the information collected on this site. We only have access to/collect information that you voluntarily give us via email or other direct contacts from you. We will not sell or rent this information to anyone.

We will use your information to respond to you, regarding the reason you contacted us. We will not share your information with any third party outside of our organization, other than as necessary to fulfill your request, e.g., to set up web hosting or payment gateways.

You have a right to receive confidential communications of protected health information by alternate methods or at alternate locations, upon reasonable request. Examples of alternatives may be sending data to a phone number or mailing address other than your home. We shall make a reasonable accommodation to honor such requests, which must be submitted in writing to: AmeriPharma, 132 S. Anita Drive, #210, Orange, CA 92868.

Unless you ask us not to, we may contact you via email in the future to tell you about specials, new products or services, or changes to this privacy policy.

Your Access to and Control Over Information

You may opt out of any future contacts from us at any time. You can do the following at any time by contacting us via the email address or phone number given on our website:

  1. See what data we have about you if any.
  2. Change/correct any data we have about you.
  3. Have us delete any data we have about you.
  4. Express any concern you have about our use of your data.

Security

We take precautions to protect your information. When you submit sensitive information via the website, your information is protected both online and offline.

Wherever we collect sensitive information (such as credit card data), that information is encrypted and transmitted to us in a secure way. You can verify this by looking for a closed lock icon at the bottom of your web browser, or looking for “https” at the beginning of the address of the web page.

While we use encryption to protect sensitive information transmitted online, we also protect your information offline. Only employees who need the information to perform a specific job (for example, billing or customer service) are granted access to personally identifiable information. The computers/servers in which we store personally identifiable information are kept in a secure environment.

Complaints

If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, if you have any questions about this Notice, or how we use and disclose any of your information, including your Protected Health Information, please contact us. You may obtain forms needed for request submission from our pharmacy. If you feel we have violated your rights, you may file a complaint with our Privacy Officer, Carrie Coleman, or with the Secretary of Health and Human Services. If you feel that we are not abiding by this privacy policy in any other way, you should contact us immediately via telephone at (877) 778-0318 or via email. You can contact the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights. For online complaint forms and contact information for the regional OCR offices, please visit www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/index.html or email: [email protected] for assistance or questions about complaint forms.