Privacy Policy
Legal
Introduction
Ann (Ana) Zedginidze, LPCC, (“we,” “us,” or “our”), is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, disclose, and protect personal information when you visit our website at anazed.com (the “Site”) and when you engage with our psychotherapy and counseling practice.
This Privacy Policy applies to information collected through the Site. It does not replace or supersede our Notice of Privacy Practices (NPP) required under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which governs the use and disclosure of Protected Health Information (PHI) created or maintained in the context of a therapeutic relationship. A copy of the NPP is provided to all clients at the beginning of treatment.
We are licensed to practice in California, Minnesota, and New York, and this policy is designed to comply with the privacy laws of those states, including the California Consumer Privacy Act as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CCPA/CPRA), the Minnesota Consumer Data Privacy Act, and the New York SHIELD Act.
1. Information We Collect
1.1 Information You Provide Directly
- Name, email address, and phone number when you submit a consultation request or contact us via hello@anazed.com.
- Scheduling information when you book a consultation through Calendly, our third-party scheduling platform.
- Any information you voluntarily include in email communications with us.
We do not collect clinical or health-related information through this Site. All clinical information is collected within the context of an established therapeutic relationship and is governed by HIPAA and our Notice of Privacy Practices.
1.2 Information Collected Automatically
When you visit the Site, certain information may be collected automatically through cookies, analytics, and similar tracking technologies, including:
- IP address and approximate geographic location.
- Browser type, operating system, and device information.
- Pages visited, time spent on pages, and referring URLs.
- Cookies and similar identifiers used by our website hosting platform (Webflow) and any embedded analytics services.
1.3 Information from Third Parties
We may receive limited information from third-party services integrated with the Site, including Calendly (scheduling data) and Webflow (hosting analytics). We do not purchase personal information from data brokers or other commercial sources.
2. How We Use Your Information
We use the personal information we collect for the following purposes:
- To respond to your inquiries and consultation requests.
- To schedule and manage appointments.
- To communicate with you about services, scheduling, and administrative matters.
- To operate, maintain, and improve the Site.
- To comply with legal obligations, including licensing requirements and applicable state and federal law.
- To protect the rights, safety, and property of our practice, our clients, and the public.
We do not use your personal information for marketing purposes, sell your information to third parties, or use automated decision-making or profiling.
3. How We Share Your Information
We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We may share your information only in the following limited circumstances:
- Service providers: We use third-party services that may process your data on our behalf, including Calendly (scheduling), Webflow (website hosting), and any payment processing providers. These providers are bound by their own privacy policies and, where applicable, data processing agreements.
- Legal requirements: We may disclose information when required by law, regulation, legal process, or governmental request, including to comply with mandatory reporting obligations under applicable state law.
- Safety: We may disclose information when we believe in good faith that disclosure is necessary to protect the safety of any person, to address fraud or security issues, or to protect our legal rights.
For information about how Protected Health Information (PHI) is used and disclosed in the clinical context, please refer to our Notice of Privacy Practices provided at the start of treatment.
4. Cookies and Tracking Technologies
The Site may use cookies and similar tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience and to understand how visitors interact with the Site. Cookies are small text files stored on your device by your web browser.
4.1 Types of Cookies We May Use
| Category | Purpose | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Essential | Site functionality | Required for the Site to function properly. These cannot be disabled. |
| Analytics | Usage statistics | Help us understand how visitors use the Site (e.g., pages visited, time on site). May be provided by Webflow or similar services. |
| Third-party | Embedded services | Set by services embedded in the Site such as Calendly. Governed by their respective privacy policies. |
4.2 Managing Cookies
You can control cookies through your browser settings. Most browsers allow you to refuse cookies, delete existing cookies, or be notified when a cookie is set. Please note that disabling cookies may affect the functionality of certain features on the Site.
We do not respond to “Do Not Track” browser signals at this time, as there is no uniform industry standard for honoring such signals. However, California residents may exercise their privacy rights as described in Section 7 below.
5. Data Security
We implement reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect your personal information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These measures include the use of secure hosting, encrypted connections (HTTPS), and access controls.
However, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee the absolute security of your information. Email communications to hello@anazed.com are not encrypted and should not be used to transmit sensitive health information.
In the event of a data breach involving your personal information, we will notify affected individuals and relevant authorities as required by applicable law, including the California Consumer Privacy Act, the New York SHIELD Act, and the Minnesota Consumer Data Privacy Act.
6. Data Retention
We retain personal information collected through the Site only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this policy, or as required by law. Specifically:
- Contact and scheduling information is retained for the duration of any ongoing therapeutic relationship and for a reasonable period thereafter for administrative and legal compliance purposes.
- Website analytics data is retained in accordance with our hosting provider’s data retention policies.
- Clinical records (Protected Health Information) are retained in accordance with applicable state law, which generally requires retention for a minimum of seven (7) years after the last date of service for adult clients, and longer for records involving minors.
7. Your Privacy Rights
7.1 Rights for All Users
Regardless of your location, you may:
- Request information about what personal data we hold about you.
- Request correction of inaccurate personal data.
- Request deletion of your personal data, subject to legal retention requirements.
- Withdraw consent to any processing based on consent at any time.
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at hello@anazed.com.
7.2 California Residents (CCPA/CPRA)
If you are a California resident, you have the following rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act:
- Right to Know: You may request that we disclose the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you, the categories of sources from which we collected it, our business purpose for collecting it, and the categories of third parties with whom we share it.
- Right to Delete: You may request that we delete personal information we have collected from you, subject to certain exceptions.
- Right to Correct: You may request that we correct inaccurate personal information we maintain about you.
- Right to Opt-Out of Sale or Sharing: We do not sell or share your personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising. No opt-out is necessary.
- Right to Non-Discrimination: We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your CCPA/CPRA rights.
To submit a request, email hello@anazed.com with the subject line “California Privacy Request.” We will verify your identity before processing your request and will respond within 45 days as required by law.
Note: The CCPA/CPRA does not apply to Protected Health Information (PHI) governed by HIPAA. Your rights regarding PHI are described in our separate Notice of Privacy Practices.
7.3 Minnesota Residents
Under the Minnesota Consumer Data Privacy Act, Minnesota residents have the right to:
- Confirm whether we are processing your personal data and access that data.
- Correct inaccuracies in your personal data.
- Delete personal data you have provided to us or that we have obtained about you.
- Obtain a copy of your personal data in a portable, readily usable format.
- Opt out of the processing of personal data for targeted advertising, sale of personal data, or profiling in furtherance of decisions that produce legal or similarly significant effects. We do not engage in any of these activities.
To exercise your rights, contact us at hello@anazed.com. We will respond within the timeframes required by Minnesota law.
7.4 New York Residents
Under the New York SHIELD Act, we are required to implement reasonable safeguards to protect the private information of New York residents and to provide notification in the event of a data breach. While New York does not currently have a comprehensive consumer privacy rights statute equivalent to the CCPA, we extend the same rights of access, correction, and deletion described above to all users, including New York residents.
If you are a New York resident and believe your data has been compromised, you may contact the New York Attorney General’s office at ag.ny.gov.
8. HIPAA and Protected Health Information
As a licensed healthcare provider, we are required to comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and its implementing regulations regarding the use and disclosure of Protected Health Information (PHI).
This Privacy Policy governs information collected through the Site and does not replace our HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices (NPP). The NPP describes in detail how we may use and disclose your PHI, your rights regarding your health information, and our legal duties with respect to your PHI. A copy of the NPP is provided to all clients at the start of treatment and is available upon request by contacting hello@anazed.com.
Important: Personal information collected through the Site prior to the establishment of a therapeutic relationship (such as your name and email from a consultation request) is generally not considered PHI under HIPAA. Once a therapeutic relationship is established, clinical information created or received in the course of treatment is governed by HIPAA and our NPP.
9. Children’s Privacy
This Site is not directed to individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us at hello@anazed.com and we will take steps to delete such information.
10. International Users
This Site is intended for use by individuals located in the United States, specifically in the states where Ana Zedginidze, LPCC is licensed to practice (California, Minnesota, and New York). If you access the Site from outside the United States, please be aware that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States, where data protection laws may differ from those in your country.
11. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or for other operational reasons. When we make changes, we will update the effective date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Your continued use of the Site after the posting of changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.
12. Contact Information
If you have questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy, wish to exercise your privacy rights, or would like to request a copy of our HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices, please contact us:
Ana Zedginidze, LPCC
220 Montgomery St #600, San Francisco, CA 94104
hello@anazed.com
www.anazed.com