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HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices
THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.
​Effective Date: January 15, 2026
Who We Are
Natural Hair Transplant Medical Center ("NHT," "we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting the privacy of your health information. This Notice of Privacy Practices describes how we may use and disclose your Protected Health Information (PHI) to carry out treatment, payment, or health care operations, and for other purposes that are permitted or required by law. It also describes your rights regarding your health information.
We are required by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and California law to:
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Maintain the privacy of your Protected Health Information
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Provide you with this Notice of our legal duties and privacy practices
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Follow the terms of the Notice currently in effect
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Notify you if we are unable to agree to a requested restriction
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Accommodate reasonable requests you may have to communicate health information by alternative means or at alternative locations.
Your Protected Health Information
Protected Health Information (PHI) is information about you, including demographic information, that may identify you and relates to your past, present, or future physical or mental health or condition, the provision of health care to you, or payment for that health care.
How We May Use and Disclose Your Health Information
The following categories describe different ways that we use and disclose your PHI. Not every use or disclosure in a category will be listed. However, all of the ways we are permitted to use and disclose information will fall within one of the categories.
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1. For Treatment
We may use your PHI to provide you with medical treatment and services. We may disclose your PHI to doctors, nurses, technicians, medical students, or other personnel who are involved in taking care of you at NHT.
Example: During a hair transplant consultation, your physician may review your medical history to determine if you are a candidate for FUE 2.0, FUT 2.0 (HUMS), or other procedures. Your PHI may be shared with our surgical team members involved in your care.
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Example: We may disclose PHI to physicians who may be treating you for other medical conditions to coordinate your care and ensure there are no contraindications.
We may also disclose your PHI to individuals outside NHT who may be involved in your medical care after you leave our facility, such as your primary care physician or specialists.
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2. For Payment
We may use and disclose your PHI to bill and collect payment for the treatment and services we provide to you. This includes contacting your health insurance company to determine whether it will cover your procedure and what your co-payment will be.
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Example: We may send your insurance company information about a procedure you received so your insurance company will pay us or reimburse you. We may also tell your insurance plan about a treatment you are going to receive to obtain prior approval or to determine whether your plan will cover the treatment.
Example: We may disclose limited PHI to collection agencies or attorneys if you have not paid for services provided.
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3. For Health Care Operations
We may use and disclose your PHI for our health care operations. These uses and disclosures are necessary to run NHT and ensure that all of our patients receive quality care.
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Example: We may use PHI to review the quality of the treatment and services you receive and to evaluate the performance of our staff in caring for you. We may also combine PHI about many patients to decide what additional services NHT should offer, what services are not needed, and whether certain new treatments are effective.
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Example: We may disclose PHI to medical students, residents, or other health care professionals for training and learning purposes.
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Example: We may use or disclose PHI for business planning and development such as cost management, and business planning related activities.
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We may also disclose information to doctors, nurses, technicians, and other NHT personnel for review and learning purposes. We may combine the PHI we have with PHI from other health care providers to compare how we are doing and see where we can make improvements.
We may remove information that identifies you from this set of PHI so others may use it to study health care and health care delivery without learning who our specific patients are.
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4. Appointment Reminders
We may use and disclose your PHI to contact you to remind you that you have an appointment at NHT. We may contact you by phone, email, text message, or mail.
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5. Treatment Alternatives and Health-related Benefits and Services
We may use and disclose your PHI to tell you about or recommend possible treatment options or alternatives that may be of interest to you, or to inform you about health-related benefits or services that may be of interest to you.
Example: We may contact you to inform you about post-operative care instructions, hair growth timelines, or potential complementary treatments like medication therapy to prevent future hair loss.
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6. Individuals Involved in Your Care or Payment for Your Care
We may release PHI about you to a friend or family member who is involved in your medical care or helps pay for your care, unless you object. We may also give information to someone who helps pay for your care. We may also tell your family or friends about your condition and that you are at our facility.
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If you are unable to agree or object to such a disclosure, we may disclose such information as necessary if we determine that it is in your best interest based on our professional judgment.
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We may use or disclose PHI to notify or assist in notifying a family member, personal representative, or another person responsible for your care, regarding your location and general condition.
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7. Research
Under certain circumstances, we may use and disclose your PHI for research purposes. Before we use or disclose PHI for research, the research project will have been approved through a special approval process that evaluates the research proposal and protocols to ensure the privacy of your PHI. We may also disclose PHI about you to people preparing to conduct a research project.
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Under limited circumstances, we may use and disclose your PHI without your permission for research when an institutional review board or privacy board has reviewed the research proposal and has set up protocols to ensure the privacy of your information and approves the research.
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Special Situations
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8. As Required by Law
We will disclose your PHI when required to do so by federal, state, or local law.
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9. To Avert a Serious Threat to Health or Safety
We may use and disclose your PHI when necessary to prevent a serious threat to your health and safety or the health and safety of the public or another person. Any disclosure would only be to someone able to help prevent the threat.
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10. Organ and Tissue Donation
If you are an organ donor, we may release your PHI to organizations that handle organ procurement or organ, eye, or tissue transplantation, or to an organ donation bank, as necessary to facilitate organ or tissue donation and transplantation.
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11. Military and Veterans
If you are a member of the armed forces, we may release your PHI as required by military command authorities or to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
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12. Workers' Compensation
We may release your PHI for workers' compensation or similar programs that provide benefits for work-related injuries or illness.
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13. Public Health Risks
We may disclose your PHI for public health activities. These activities generally include:
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To prevent or control disease, injury, or disability.
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To report births and deatha.
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To report child abuse or neglect.
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To report reactions to medications or problems with products.
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To notify people of recalls of products they may be using.
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To notify a person who may have been exposed to a disease or may be at risk for contracting or spreading a disease or condition.
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14. Health Oversight Activities
We may disclose your PHI to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law. These oversight activities include audits, investigations, inspections, licensure, and similar activities that are necessary for the government to monitor the health care system, government programs, and compliance with civil rights laws.
15. Lawsuits and Disputes
If you are involved in a lawsuit or a dispute, we may disclose your PHI in response to a court or administrative order. We may also disclose your PHI in response to a subpoena, discovery request, or other lawful process by someone else involved in the dispute, but only if efforts have been made to tell you about the request or to obtain an order protecting the information requested.
16. Law Enforcement
We may release PHI if asked to do so by a law enforcement official:
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In response to a court order, subpoena, warrant, summons, or similar process.
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To identify or locate a suspect, fugitive, material witness, or missing person.
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About the victim of a crime under certain limited circumstances.
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About a death we believe may be the result of criminal conduct.
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About criminal conduct at NHT.
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In emergency circumstances to report a crime; the location of the crime or victims; or the identity, description, or location of the person who committed the crime.
17. Coroners, Medical Examiners, and Funeral Directors
We may release PHI to a coroner or medical examiner. This may be necessary to identify a deceased person or determine the cause of death. We may also disclose PHI to funeral directors as necessary to carry out their duties.
18. National Security and Intelligence Activities
We may release your PHI to authorized federal officials for intelligence, counterintelligence, and other national security activities authorized by law.
19. Protective Services for the President and Others
We may disclose your PHI 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. Inmates
If you are an inmate of a correctional institution or under the custody of a law enforcement official, we may release your PHI to the correctional institution or law enforcement official if necessary: (1) for the institution to provide you with health care; (2) to protect your health and safety or the health and safety of others; or (3) for the safety and security of the correctional institution.
21. Marketing
We will not use or disclose your PHI for marketing purposes without your written authorization. If we receive financial compensation for making such communications, we will inform you of that fact in the authorization form.
22. Sale of Health Information
We will not sell your PHI without your written authorization.
23. Fundraising Activities
We do not currently use PHI for fundraising activities. If this changes in the future, we will provide you with an opportunity to opt out of receiving such communications.
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Uses and Disclosures that Require Your Written Authorization
You have the following rights regarding the PHI we maintain about you:
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1. Right to Inspect and Copy
You have the right to inspect and copy your PHI that may be used to make decisions about your care. Usually, this includes medical and billing records.
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To inspect and copy your PHI, you must submit your request in writing to our Privacy Officer at the address listed at the end of this Notice. If you request a copy of your information, we may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee for copying, mailing, or other supplies associated with your request.
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We may deny your request to inspect and copy in certain limited circumstances. If you are denied access to your PHI, you may request that the denial be reviewed. If such a review is required by law, we will select a licensed health care professional to review your request and our denial. The person conducting the review will not be the person who denied your request. We will comply with the outcome of the review.
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2. Right to Amend
If you feel that the PHI we have about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask us to amend the information. You have the right to request an amendment for as long as the information is kept by or for NHT.
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To request an amendment, your request must be made in writing and submitted to our Privacy Officer. You must provide a reason that supports your request.
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We may deny your request for an amendment if it is not in writing or does not include a reason to support the request. In addition, we may deny your request if you ask us to amend information that:
• Was not created by us, unless the person or entity that created the information is no longer available to make the amendment.
• Is not part of the PHI kept by or for NHT.
• Is not part of the information you would be permitted to inspect and copy.
• Is accurate and complete.
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If we deny your request, you have the right to file a statement of disagreement with us, and we may prepare a rebuttal to your statement and will provide you with a copy of any such rebuttal.
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3. Right to an Accounting of Disclosures
You have the right to request an "accounting of disclosures." This is a list of certain disclosures we made of your PHI.
To request this list or accounting of disclosures, you must submit your request in writing to our Privacy Officer. Your request must state a time period, which may not be longer than six years and may not include dates before April 14, 2003. Your request should indicate in what form you want the list (for example, on paper or electronically). The first list you request within a 12-month period will be free. For additional lists within the same 12-month period, we may charge you for the costs of providing the list. We will notify you of the cost involved, and you may choose to withdraw or modify your request at that time before any costs are incurred.
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4. Right to Request Restrictions
You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the PHI we use or disclose about you for treatment, payment, or health care operations. You also have the right to request a limit on the PHI we disclose about you to someone who is involved in your care or the payment for your care, like a family member or friend.
We are not required to agree to your request unless you are asking us to restrict the disclosure of your PHI to your health insurance plan for payment or health care operations purposes and such information pertains solely to a health care item or service for which you have paid us "out-of-pocket" in full. If we do agree to the restriction, we will comply with your request unless the information is needed to provide you with emergency treatment.
To request restrictions, you must make your request in writing to our Privacy Officer. In your request, you must tell us: (1) what information you want to limit; (2) whether you want to limit our use, disclosure, or both; and (3) to whom you want the limits to apply, for example, disclosures to your spouse.
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5. Right to Request Confidential Communications
You have the right to request that we communicate with you about medical matters in a certain way or at a certain location. For example, you can ask that we only contact you at work or by mail.
To request confidential communications, you must make your request in writing to our Privacy Officer. We will not ask you the reason for your request. We will accommodate all reasonable requests. Your request must specify how or where you wish to be contacted.
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6. Right to a Paper Copy of this Notice
You have the right to a paper copy of this Notice. You may ask us to give you a copy of this Notice at any time. Even if you have agreed to receive this Notice electronically, you are still entitled to a paper copy.
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You may obtain a copy of this Notice at our website: www.hairtransplant.com.
To obtain a paper copy of this Notice, contact our Privacy Officer at the address or phone number listed at the end of this Notice.
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7. Right to Notification of a Breach
You have the right to be notified in the event that we (or a Business Associate) discover a breach of your unsecured PHI.
Changes to this Notice
We reserve the right to change this Notice. We reserve the right to make the revised or changed Notice effective for PHI we already have about you as well as any information we receive in the future. We will post a copy of the current Notice at our facility. The Notice will contain the effective date on the first page.
In addition, each time you register at or are admitted to NHT for treatment or health care services as an inpatient or outpatient, we will offer you a copy of the current Notice in effect.
Complaints
If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with NHT or with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. To file a complaint with NHT, contact our Privacy Officer at the contact information listed below. All complaints must be submitted in writing.
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You will not be penalized or retaliated against for filing a complaint.
Contact Information
If you have any questions about this Notice or wish to exercise any of your rights described in this Notice, please contact:
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Privacy Officer
Natural Hair Transplant Medical Center
1000 Dove Street, Suite #250
Newport Beach, California 92660
Phone: (949) 622-6969
Email: doctor@hairtransplant.com
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You may also file a complaint with:
Office for Civil Rights
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Room 509F, HHH Building
Washington, D.C. 20201
Phone: 1-877-696-6775
Online: https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/filing-a-complaint/index.html