Linden Dental Associates LDA, LLC
Effective Date: April 18, 2026
This notice, in plain words
This is a short summary to help you read faster. The full notice below is the official version. If anything here differs from the full text, the full text controls.
Federal law protects your health information. This notice explains how. It tells you how we may use your health data. It tells you when we may share it. And it tells you the rights you have over it. The law behind this is called HIPAA. Every health provider you see must give you a notice like this one.
We use your health data for three main things. First, treatment. Your dentist and hygienist use your records to care for you. They may share records with a specialist who joins your care. Second, payment. We send claims to your insurance plan. The plan needs some of your data to pay the claim. Third, running our practice. We use records to check quality. To train our team. To keep the office working well.
Some everyday uses are allowed too. We may call or text you with appointment reminders. We may tell you about services that could help your care. If you bring a family member into the room, we may speak about your care in front of them. Tell us if you would rather we did not.
Some sharing happens only when the law requires it. Public health reporting is one example. Court orders are another. Cases of abuse or serious threats to safety are another. These are narrow cases. The full notice below lists them.
For most other things, we need your written permission first. That is called an authorization. You can give it. You can also take it back later, in writing. Taking it back stops future sharing. It cannot undo sharing that already happened with your permission.
Now the important part. Your rights. You have the right to see your dental records. You have the right to get a copy of them. You have the right to ask us to fix a record you believe is wrong. You have the right to ask for a list of certain times we shared your data. You have the right to ask us to limit how we use or share your data. We will say yes when we can. You have the right to ask us to contact you in a certain way. For example, only by phone, or only at one address. You have the right to a paper copy of this notice at any time. Just ask.
If you believe your privacy rights were violated, you can complain. You can complain to us directly. You can also complain to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Complaining will never change how we treat you. That is your right too, and we mean it.
We are required by law to follow the notice that is currently in effect. If we change the notice, the new version will be available here and at our office.
Questions about any of this? Call 908-486-5252. Or ask any team member at your next visit. We will explain any part of it, in plain words, for as long as you need.
Your rights, one by one
You can see your records. Just ask. You can get a copy. We provide it. You can ask us to fix an error. We review it. You can ask who we shared with. We tell you. You can ask us to share less. We say yes when we can. You can pick how we reach you. Phone only? Fine. One address only? Fine. You can get this notice on paper. Any time. Free.
What we will never do
We will never sell your health data. We will never share it for ads. We will never punish you for asking questions. We will never punish you for filing a complaint. Not ever. The law forbids it. Our values forbid it first.
If something feels wrong
Speak up. Tell any team member. Or call the office. Or write to us. You can also go straight to the federal government. Their door is open too. No one here will treat you worse for it. Your rights are not a favor we grant. They are yours. Full stop.
This page may sound formal. The idea behind it is simple. Your health story belongs to you. We are just its careful keepers. We take that job as seriously as the care itself. Ask us anything about it. Any time. In English or in Spanish. We will answer in words that make sense.
Three things to remember
One. Your records are yours. You can see them any time. Two. We guard them with real care. Day in, day out. Three. You can speak up if something feels off. No fear. No cost. No change in how we treat you. That is the heart of this whole notice. The rest is detail. Read it when you like. Ask us when you wish. We are here for both.
And if legal words ever tire your eyes, stop and call us. A kind voice beats fine print every time. We would rather talk it through than have you guess. That offer never expires.
One last word. Rules like these can feel cold on a page. In real life, they are warm. They mean your story is safe with us. They mean you can trust the chair you sit in. They mean the team that knows your teeth also guards your name. That is the point of all of it. And we live it, visit by visit, year by year, for every person who walks through our door.
The complete Notice of Privacy Practices follows below.
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.
1. Our Commitment to Your Privacy
Linden Dental Associates LDA, LLC (“Linden Dental,” “we,” “us,” or “our“) is committed to protecting the privacy and security of your health information. This Notice of Privacy Practices (“Notice“) describes how we may use and disclose your Protected Health Information (“PHI“) to carry out treatment, payment, or healthcare operations, and for other purposes permitted or required by law. It also describes your rights regarding your PHI.
“Protected Health Information” means information about you, including demographic information, that may identify you and that relates to your past, present, or future physical or mental health, the healthcare services you receive, or the payment for those services.
We are required by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA“), as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (“HITECH“), and their implementing regulations at 45 CFR Parts 160 and 164, to maintain the privacy of your PHI, provide you with this Notice of our legal duties and privacy practices, abide by the terms of the Notice currently in effect, and notify you following a breach of unsecured PHI.
2. Uses and Disclosures That Do Not Require Your Authorization
We may use and disclose your PHI for the following purposes without your written authorization:
A. Treatment
We may use and disclose your PHI to provide, coordinate, or manage your dental care and any related services. This includes communications with other healthcare providers, specialists, laboratories, pharmacies, and institutions involved in your care. For example, we may disclose PHI to a dental laboratory in connection with the fabrication of a crown or prosthesis, or to a specialist to whom we refer you for endodontic or oral surgery services.
B. Payment
We may use and disclose your PHI to obtain payment for the services we provide. This includes determining eligibility and coverage, submitting claims, obtaining pre-authorization, billing, and collection activities. For example, we may send claims to your dental insurance carrier that identify you, your diagnosis. The services provided.
C. Healthcare Operations
We may use and disclose your PHI to operate our practice. Examples include quality assessment and improvement activities, reviewing the competence of our clinicians, training programs, accreditation and licensing activities, conducting or arranging for medical review and legal services, general administration, business planning, and management.
3. Other Uses and Disclosures Permitted or Required by Law
In addition to uses and disclosures for treatment, payment, and healthcare operations, we are permitted or required by law to use or disclose your PHI, without your authorization, in the following circumstances (as further described in 45 CFR § 164.512):
- When required by law. We will disclose PHI when required by federal, state, or local law.
- Public health activities. We may disclose PHI for public health activities, including preventing or controlling disease, injury, or disability. reporting births, deaths, and certain conditions. reporting adverse events related to products or activities regulated by the FDA. reporting suspected abuse, neglect, or domestic violence to authorized government authorities. and notifying individuals who may have been exposed to a communicable disease.
- Health oversight activities. We may disclose PHI to a health oversight agency for audits, investigations, inspections, licensure, and similar activities authorized by law.
- Judicial and administrative proceedings. We may disclose PHI in response to a court or administrative order, subpoena, discovery request, or other lawful process, subject to applicable requirements and protections.
- Law enforcement. We may disclose PHI to law enforcement officials for purposes such as identifying or locating a suspect, fugitive, or missing person. responding to a valid court order or warrant. providing information about a victim of a crime under specified circumstances. or reporting a crime that occurred on our premises.
- Coroners, medical examiners, and funeral directors. We may disclose PHI to coroners, medical examiners, and funeral directors as necessary to carry out their duties.
- Organ, eye, or tissue donation. We may disclose PHI to organizations that procure or transplant organs, eyes, or tissues, to the extent necessary to facilitate donation.
- Research. We may use or disclose PHI for research purposes where the research has been approved by an Institutional Review Board or Privacy Board in accordance with HIPAA.
- Serious threat to health or safety. We may use or disclose PHI when necessary to prevent a serious and imminent threat to the health or safety of a person or the public, consistent with applicable law and standards of ethical conduct.
- Specialized government functions. We may disclose PHI for specialized government functions, including military and veterans’ activities, national security and intelligence activities, protective services for the President and others, and correctional institution or custodial situations.
- Workers’ compensation. We may disclose PHI as authorized by and to the extent necessary to comply with laws relating to workers’ compensation or similar programs.
4. Uses and Disclosures Requiring Your Written Authorization
The following uses and disclosures of your PHI will be made only with your prior written authorization:
- Marketing. Most uses and disclosures of PHI for marketing purposes require your written authorization, as required by 45 CFR § 164.508(a)(3). An authorization is not required for face-to-face communications, communications involving only a promotional gift of nominal value, or certain treatment and healthcare operations communications.
- Sale of PHI. Any disclosure of PHI that constitutes a sale of PHI requires your written authorization, as required by 45 CFR § 164.508(a)(4).
- Psychotherapy notes. Most uses and disclosures of psychotherapy notes, where applicable, require your written authorization.
- Other uses and disclosures not described in this Notice. Any other use or disclosure of your PHI that is not described in this Notice or otherwise permitted by law will be made only with your written authorization.
You may revoke a written authorization at any time by submitting a written revocation to our Privacy Officer, except to the extent we have already relied on your authorization.
5. Appointment Reminders, Treatment Alternatives, and Health-Related Benefits
We may use and disclose your PHI to contact you regarding:
- Appointment reminders, confirmations, and recalls (by mail, telephone, email, or, if you have enrolled, by text message);
- Treatment alternatives or other health-related benefits and services that may be of interest to you. and
- Follow-up care and post-treatment instructions.
If you would prefer to restrict or change the manner in which we contact you for these purposes, please contact our Privacy Officer using the information in Section 10.
6. Your Rights Regarding Your Protected Health Information
You have the following rights with respect to your PHI:
A. Right to Inspect and Obtain a Copy
You have the right to inspect and obtain a copy of PHI that may be used to make decisions about your care, including dental and billing records. Your request must be made in writing to the Privacy Officer. We will respond within 30 days (or within 60 days if the information is not maintained onsite, with one 30-day extension available). We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee permitted by law for copies. If we maintain PHI electronically in a designated record set, you have the right to request an electronic copy.
In limited circumstances, we may deny your request to inspect or copy PHI. If we deny your request, we will provide a written explanation and, in certain cases, you may request that the denial be reviewed.
B. Right to Request Amendment
If you believe PHI we maintain about you is incorrect or incomplete, you have the right to request that we amend it. Your request must be in writing and must include the reason for the amendment. We may deny the request in certain circumstances, including if the information was not created by us, is not part of our records, or is accurate and complete. If we deny your request, you may submit a statement of disagreement, which will be included with future disclosures of the disputed information.
C. Right to an Accounting of Disclosures
You have the right to request an accounting of certain disclosures of your PHI made by us in the six years prior to the date of your request. The accounting will not include disclosures made: for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations. pursuant to your authorization. to you or your personal representative. for a facility directory or to persons involved in your care. for national security or intelligence purposes. to correctional institutions or law enforcement officials. or as part of a limited data set. The first accounting in any 12-month period will be provided free of charge. we may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee for additional requests within that period.
D. Right to Request Restrictions
You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on how we use or disclose your PHI for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations, or to persons involved in your care. We are not required to agree to a requested restriction, except that we must agree to a request to restrict disclosure of PHI to a health plan if the disclosure is for payment or healthcare operations (and is not otherwise required by law) and the PHI pertains solely to a healthcare item or service for which you, or another person on your behalf, has paid us in full out-of-pocket.
E. Right to Request Confidential Communications
You have the right to request that we communicate with you about health matters in a certain way or at a certain location. For example, you may request that we contact you only at a specific phone number or only by mail to a particular address. We will accommodate reasonable requests.
F. Right to a Paper Copy of This Notice
You have the right to obtain a paper copy of this Notice at any time upon request, even if you have agreed to receive it electronically.
G. Right to Be Notified of a Breach
You have the right to be notified in the event of a breach of your unsecured PHI, as required by 45 CFR §§ 164.400–414.
H. Right to Choose Someone to Act for You
If you have given someone medical power of attorney, or if someone is your legal guardian, that person can exercise your rights and make choices about your PHI. We will verify that the person has this authority before taking any action.
7. Our Responsibilities
We are required by law to:
- Maintain the privacy and security of your PHI;
- Provide you with this Notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to PHI;
- Abide by the terms of the Notice currently in effect;
- Notify you if we are unable to agree to a requested restriction;
- Accommodate reasonable requests you may have to communicate PHI by alternative means or at alternative locations. and
- Notify you following a breach of your unsecured PHI.
We will not use or disclose your PHI other than as described in this Notice unless you give us permission in writing. If you give us permission, you may revoke it in writing at any time. We will stop using or disclosing your PHI for the purposes covered by the revocation, except to the extent we have already acted in reliance on it.
8. Changes to This Notice
We reserve the right to change the terms of this Notice and to make the new terms effective for all PHI we maintain, including PHI we created or received before the change. If we make a material change to this Notice, we will post the revised Notice in our office and on our Website at www.lindendentalassociates.com/notice-of-privacy-practices. The effective date of the current Notice will be shown at the top of the Notice. You may request a copy of the current Notice at any time.
9. Complaints
If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with us or with the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
To file a complaint with us, please contact:
Privacy Officer Linden Dental Associates LDA, LLC 909 N Wood Ave Linden, NJ 07036 Phone: 908-486-5252 Email: privacy@lindendentalassociates.com
To file a complaint with the federal government, you may contact:
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights 200 Independence Avenue, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20201 Phone: 1-877-696-6775 Online: www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints
We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.
10. Contact Information
If you have questions about this Notice, wish to exercise any of your rights described above, or wish to obtain additional information, please contact:
Privacy Officer Linden Dental Associates LDA, LLC 909 N Wood Ave Linden, NJ 07036 Phone: 908-486-5252 Email: privacy@lindendentalassociates.com
Acknowledgment of Receipt
(For in-office use, this page should be signed by each new patient at first visit and retained in the patient record per 45 CFR § 164.520(c)(2)(ii).)
I, ______________________________________________ (print name), acknowledge that I have received a copy of the Notice of Privacy Practices of Linden Dental Associates LDA, LLC.
Signature: ______________________________________
Date: ______________________________________
Relationship to patient (if not the patient): ______________________________________
If acknowledgment cannot be obtained, the practice must document its good-faith efforts to obtain the acknowledgment and the reason it was not obtained, as required by 45 CFR § 164.520(c)(2)(ii).