Privacy Policy

New patients, please read the following Privacy Policy and Consent to Treat & Arbitration Agreement.

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.

The privacy of your medical information is important to us. We understand that your medical information is personal and we are committed to protecting it. We create a record of the care and services you receive at our organization. We need this record to provide you with quality care and to comply with certain legal requirements. This notice will tell you about the ways we may use and share medical information about you. We also describe your rights and certain duties we have regarding the use and disclosure of medical information.

Law Requires Us to:

1. Keep your medical information private.

2. Give you this notice describing our legal duties, privacy practices, and your rights regarding your medical information.

3. Follow the terms of the notice that is now in effect.

We Have the Right to:

1. Change our privacy practices and the terms of this notice at any time, provided that the changes are permitted by law.

2. Make the changes in our privacy practices and the new terms of our notice effective for all medical information that we keep, including information previously created or received before the changes.

Notice of Change to Privacy Practices:

1. Before we make an important change in our privacy practices, we will change this notice and make the new notice available upon request.

The following section describes different ways that we use and disclose medical information. Not every use of disclosure will be listed. However, we have listed all of the different ways we are permitted to use and disclose medical information. We will not use or disclose your medical information for any purpose not listed below, without your specific written authorization. Any specific written authorization you provide may be revoked at any time by writing to us.

FOR TREATMENT:

We may use medical information about you to provide you with medical treatment or services. We may disclose medical information about you to doctors, nurses, technicians, medical students, or other people who are taking care of you. We may also share medical information about you to your other health care providers to assist them in treating you.

FOR PAYMENT:

We may use and disclose your medical information for payment purposes.

FOR HEALTH CARE OPERATIONS:

We may use and disclose your medical information for our health care operations. This might include measuring and improving quality, evaluating the performance of employees, conducting training programs, and getting the accreditation, certificates, licenses and credentials we need to serve you.

ADDITIONAL USES AND DISCLOSURES:

In addition to using and disclosing your medical information for treatment, payment, and health care operations, we may use and disclose medical information for the following purposes.

Facility Directory:

Unless you notify us that you object, the following medical information about you will be placed in our facilities’ directories: your name; your location in our facility; your condition described in general terms.

Notification:

Medical information to notify or help notify: a family member, your personal representative or another person responsible for your care. We will share information about your location, general condition. If you are present, we will get your permission if possible before we share, or give you the opportunity to refuse permission. In case of emergency, and if you are not able to give or refuse permission, we will share only the health information that is directly necessary for your care, according to our professional judgment. We will also use our professional judgment to make decisions in your best interest about allowing someone to pick up medicine, medical supplies, or medical information for you.

Disaster Relief:

Medical information with a public or private organization or person who can legally assist in disaster relief efforts.

Research In Limited Circumstances:

Medical information for research purposes in limited circumstances where the research has been approved by a review board that has reviewed the research proposal and established protocols to ensure the privacy of medical information.

Coroner, Medical Examiner: To help them carry out their duties, we may share the medical information of a person who has died with a coroner or medical examiner.

Specialized Government Functions:

Subject to certain requirements, we may disclose or use health information for military personnel and veterans, for national security and intelligence activities, for protective services for the President and others, for medical suitability determinations for the Department of State, for correctional institutions and other law enforcement custodial situations and for government programs providing public benefits.

Court Orders and Judicial and Administrative Proceedings:

We may disclose medical information in response to a court or administrative order, subpoena, discovery request, or other lawful process, under certain circumstances. Under limited circumstances, such as a court order, warrant, or grand jury subpoena, we may share your medical information with law enforcement officials. We may share limited information with a law enforcement official concerning the medical information of a suspect, fugitive, material witness, crime victim or missing person. We may share the medical information of an inmate or other person in lawful custody with a law enforcement official or correctional institution under circumstances.

Public Health Activities:

As required by law, we may disclose your medical information to public health or legal authorities charged with preventing or controlling disease, injury or disability, including child abuse or neglect. We may also disclose your medical information to person subject to jurisdiction of the Food and Drug Administration for purposes of reporting adverse events associated with product defects or problems, to enable product recalls, repairs or replacements, to track products, or to conduct activities required by the Food and Drug Administration. We may also, when we are authorized by law to do so, notify a person who may have been exposed to a communicable disease or otherwise be at risk of contracting or spreading a disease or condition.

Victims of Abuse, Neglect, or Domestic Violence:

We may disclose medical information to appropriate authorities if we reasonably believe that you are a possible victim of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence or the possible victim of other crimes. We may share your medical information if it is necessary to prevent a serious threat to you health or safety or the health of safety of others. We may share medical information when necessary to help law enforcement officials capture a person who has admitted to being part of a crime or has escaped from legal custody.

Workers Compensation:

We may disclose health information when authorized and necessary to comply with laws relating to workers compensation or other similar programs.

Health Oversight Activities:

We may disclose medical information to an agency providing health oversight for oversight activities authorized by law, including audits, civil, administrative, or criminal investigations or proceeding, inspections, licensure or disciplinary actions, or other authorized activities.

Law Enforcement:

Under certain circumstances, we may disclose health information to law enforcement officials. These circumstances include reporting required by certain laws (such as the reporting of certain types of wounds), pursuant to certain subpoenas or court order, reporting limited information concerning identification and location at the request of a law enforcement official, reporting death, crimes on our premises, and crimes in emergencies.

You Have a Right to:

1. Look at or get copies of your medical information. You may request that we provide copies in a format other than photocopies. We will use the format you request unless it is not practical for us to do so. You must make your request in writing. You may get the form to request access by using the contact information listed at the end of this notice. You may also request access by sending a letter to the contact person listed at the end of this notice. If you request copies, we will charge you $25.00 for the first 20 pages and $.15 per page afterwards, plus postage if you want the copies mailed to you. Contact us using the information listed at the end of this notice, for full explanation of our fee structure.

2. Receive a list of all the times we or our business associates shared your medical information for purposes other than treatment, payment, and health care operations and other specified exceptions.

3. Request that we place additional restrictions on our use or disclosure of your medical information. We are not required to agree to these additional restrictions, but if we do, we will abide by our agreement (except in the case of an emergency).

4. Request that we communicate with you about your medical information by different means or to different locations. Your request that we communicate your medical information to you by different means or at different locations must be made in writing to the contact person listed at the end of this notice.

5. Request that we change your medical information. We may deny your request if we did not create the information you want changed or for certain other reasons. If we deny your request, we will provide you a written explanation. You may respond with a statement or disagreement that will be added to the information you wanted changed. If we accept your request to change the information, we will make reasonable efforts to tell others, including people you name, of the change and to include the changes in any future sharing of this information.

6. If you have received this notice electronically, and wish to receive a paper copy, you have the right to obtain a paper copy by making a request in writing to the Privacy Officer at our office.

If you have any questions about this notice or if you think that we may have violated your privacy rights, please contact us. You may also submit a written complaint to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. We will provide you with the address to file your complaint with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. We will not retaliate in any way if you choose to file a complaint.

MERIDIAN HARMONICS ACUPUNCTURE & ORIENTAL MEDICINE

2044 BEDFORD ROAD

BEDFORD, TX 76021

817-835-0885

Consent to Treat & Arbitration Agreement

Article 1: Agreement to Arbitrate: It is understood that any dispute as to medical malpractice, that is as to whether any medical services rendered under this contract were unnecessary or unauthorized or were improperly, negligently or incompetently rendered, will be determined by submission to arbitration as provided by state and federal law, and not by a lawsuit or resort to court process except as state and federal law provides for judicial review of arbitration proceedings. Both parties to this contract, by entering into it, are giving up their constitutional right to have any such dispute decided in a court of law before a jury, and instead are accepting the use of arbitration.

Article 2: All Claims Must be Arbitrated: It is understood that any dispute that does not relate to medical malpractice, including disputes as to whether or not a dispute is subject to arbitration, will also be determined by submission to binding arbitration. It is the intention of the parties that this agreement bind all parties as to all claims, including claims arising out of or relating to treatment or services provided by the health care provider including any heirs or past, present or future spouse(s) of the patient in relation to all claims, including loss of consortium. This agreement is also intended to bind the patient and the health care provider and/or other licensed health care providers or preceptorship interns who now or in the future treat the patient while employed by, working or associated with or serving as a back-up for the health care provider, including those working at the health care provider’s clinic or office or any other clinic or office whether signatories to this form or not. All claims for monetary damages exceeding the jurisdictional limit of the small claims court against the health care provider, and/or the health care provider’s associates, association, corporation, partnership, employees, agents and estate, must be arbitrated including, without limitation, claims for loss of consortium, wrongful death, emotional distress, injunctive relief, or punitive damages.

Article 3: Procedures and Applicable Law: A demand for arbitration must be communicated in writing to all parties. Each party shall select an arbitrator (party arbitrator) within thirty days and a third arbitrator (neutral arbitrator) shall be selected by the arbitrators appointed by the parties within thirty days thereafter. The neutral arbitrator shall then be the sole arbitrator and shall decide the arbitration. Each party to the arbitration shall pay such party’s pro rata share of the expenses and fees of the neutral arbitrator, together with other expenses of the arbitration incurred or approved by the neutral arbitrator, not including counsel fees, witness fees, or other expense incurred by a party for such party’s own benefit.

Either party shall have the absolute right to bifurcate the issues of liability and damage upon written request to the neutral arbitrator. The parties consent to the intervention and joinder in this arbitration of any person or entity that would otherwise be a proper additional party in a court action, and upon such intervention and joinder any existing court action against such additional person or entity shall be stayed pending arbitration.

The parties agree that provisions of state and federal law, where applicable, establishing the right to introduce evidence of any amount payable as a benefit to the patient to the maximum extent permitted by law, limiting the right to recover non-economic losses, and the right to have a judgment for future damages conformed to periodic payments, shall apply to disputes within this Arbitration Agreement. The parties further agree that the Commercial Arbitration Rules of the American Arbitration Association shall govern any arbitration conducted pursuant to this Arbitration Agreement.

Article 4: General Provision: All claims based upon the same incident, transaction or related circumstances shall be arbitrated in one proceeding. A claim shall be waived and forever barred if (1) on the date notice thereof is received, the claim, if asserted in a civil action, would be barred by the applicable legal statute of limitations, or (2) the claimant fails to pursue the arbitration claim in accordance with the procedures prescribed herein with reasonable diligence.

Article 5: Revocation: This agreement may be revoked by written notice delivered to the health care provider within 30 days of signature and if not revoked will govern all professional services received by the patient and all disputes between the parties.

Article 6: Retroactive Effect: If patient intends this agreement to cover services rendered before the date it is signed (for example, emergency treatment) patient should initial, in the appropriate place on the Consent to Treat Acknowledgement form.

If any provision of this Arbitration Agreement is held invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and shall not be affected by the invalidity of any other provision. I understand that I have the right to receive a copy of this Arbitration Agreement. By my signature below, I acknowledge that I have received a copy.

I hereby request and consent to the performance of acupuncture treatments and other procedures within the scope of the practice of acupuncture on me (or on the patient named below, for whom I am legally responsible) by the acupuncturist named below and/or other licensed acupuncturists who now or in the future treat me while employed by, working or associated with or serving as back-up for the acupuncturist named below, including those working at the clinic or office listed below or any other office or clinic, whether signatories to this form or not.

I understand that methods of treatment may include, but are not limited to, acupuncture, moxibustion, cupping, electrical stimulation, Tiu-Na (Oriental massage), Oriental herbal medicine, and nutritional counseling. I understand that the herbs may need to be prepared and the teas consumed according to the instructions provided orally and in writing. The herbs may be an unpleasant smell or taste. I will immediately notify a member of the clinical staff of any unanticipated or unpleasant effects associated with the consumption of the herbs.

I have been informed that acupuncture is a generally safe method of treatment, but that it may have some side effects, including bruising, numbness or tingling near the needling sites that may last a few days, and dizziness or fainting. Bruising is a common side effect of cupping. Unusual risks of acupuncture include spontaneous miscarriage, nerve damage and organ puncture, including lung puncture (pneumothorax). Infection is another possible risk, although the clinic uses sterile disposable needles and maintains a clean and safe environment. Burns and/or scarring are a potential risk of moxibustion and cupping. I understand that while this document describes the major risks of treatment, other side effect and risks may occur. The herbs and nutritional supplements (which are from plant, animal and mineral sources) that have been recommended are traditionally considered safe in the practice of Oriental Medicine, although some may be toxic in large doses. I understand that some herbs may be inappropriate during pregnancy. Some possible side effects of taking herbs are nausea, gas, stomachache, vomiting, headache, diarrhea, rashes, hives, and tingling of the tongue. I will notify a clinical staff member who is caring for me if I am or become pregnant.

I do not expect the clinical staff to be able to anticipate and explain all possible risks and complications of treatment, and I wish to rely on clinical staff to exercise judgment during the course of treatment which the clinical staff thinks at the time, based upon the facts then known is in my best interest. I understand that results are not guaranteed.

I understand the clinical and administrative staff may review my patient records and lab reports, but all my records will be kept confidential and will not be released without my written consent.

By voluntarily signing the consent form, I show that I have read, or have had read to me, the above consent to treatment, have been told about the risks and benefits of acupuncture and other procedures, and have had an opportunity to ask questions. I intend this consent form to cover the entire course of treatment for my present condition and for any future condition(s) for which I seek treatment.

NOTICE: BY SIGNING THIS CONTRACT YOU ARE AGREEING TO HAVE ANY ISSUE OF MEDICAL MALPRACTICE DECIDED BY NEUTRAL ARBITRATION AND YOU ARE GIVING UP YOUR RIGHT TO A JURY OR COURT TRIAL. SEE ARTICLE 1 OF THIS CONTRACT.