Mend & Kindle Collective

HIPAA – Notice of Privacy Practices

Effective date: September 3, 2026    
Last updated: September 25, 2026

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.

This notice applies to MAD CARE LLC and Marie Delabarrera, LMHC (“I,” “we,” “this practice”).

My pledge

Information about you and your care is personal. Federal law (HIPAA) and the licensing laws of Hawaiʻi and Virginia require me to keep your protected health information (PHI) private, give you this notice, and follow it until I replace it. I will post the current notice at mendandkindleco.com and give you a copy before or at your first session. You may have a paper copy at any time.

How I use and share PHI

Treatment

I use your information to provide counseling, coordinate care, consult with other professionals involved in your treatment when appropriate, and keep a clinical record. For telehealth, I also use it to connect the session, confirm you are in Hawaiʻi or Virginia, and document the visit.

Payment

I use your information to bill you, run cards or other payment methods through a processor, create superbills, and — if you later use insurance — submit claims and respond to payer requests. This practice is private-pay as of the last-updated date. Insurance participation is not yet in place. If that changes, I will use PHI as needed to verify benefits and obtain payment.

Health care operations

I use PHI to run the practice: scheduling, quality review, training, licensing, audits, and arranging with vendors who help me operate (electronic health record, telehealth platform, billing). The clinical record and telehealth sessions are kept in TherapyNotes under a Business Associate Agreement. Vendors that handle PHI sign a Business Associate Agreement.

Uses that usually do not need extra written authorization

  • As required by law, court order, or lawful subpoena.
  • To public-health or government agencies when the law requires it.
  • To report suspected abuse, neglect, or exploitation of a child, elder, or dependent adult, as required by Hawaiʻi and Virginia law.
  • To prevent or lessen a serious and imminent threat to you or another person. This includes the professional duty to protect / duty to warn when the law applies.
  • For workers’ compensation or similar programs if they apply.
  • To licensing boards, professional reviewers, or health oversight agencies.
  • To coroners, medical examiners, or funeral directors as allowed by law.
  • For certain specialized government functions (for example, military or national security) when the law allows.
  • When a crime is committed on the premises or against me, as the law allows.

Uses that need your written authorization

  • Most uses of psychotherapy notes. Psychotherapy notes are my private process notes kept separate from the rest of the record. HIPAA gives them extra protection.
  • Most marketing.
  • Sale of your information. I do not sell PHI.
  • Most sharing with an employer, school, or attorney, unless another legal permission applies.

You may revoke an authorization in writing, except to the extent I have already relied on it.

Substance use disorder records

If your record includes substance use disorder information protected by 42 CFR Part 2, that information has extra federal confidentiality protections. I will not use or disclose Part 2 records for treatment, payment, or operations in ways Part 2 forbids, and I will not redisclose them without the consent Part 2 requires, except as the regulations allow (for example, certain medical emergencies or court orders that meet Part 2 standards). You may file a complaint about a Part 2 violation with the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

Telehealth

Sessions are provided by video on TherapyNotes, a HIPAA-compliant platform under a Business Associate Agreement. Risks include technology failure, power or internet loss, and the small remaining risk that electronic systems are breached. I will verify your identity and your physical location at the start of session. You agree to join from a private space. I do not record sessions. I ask that you do not record sessions unless we both agree in writing.

Email and voicemail

I use email for scheduling and brief administrative messages. Email is not a secure therapy channel. I do not provide treatment by text. This practice does not use text messaging. Do not use email or voicemail for emergencies.

Couples

If we work as a couple, the record may include both partners. I will not keep “secret” clinical material from one partner that belongs to the couple work, except as we agree in writing at the start. I still must follow the law on safety and mandated reports.

Your rights

  1. Get a paper or electronic copy of this notice.
  2. Inspect or get a copy of your record, with limited exceptions. Psychotherapy notes may be treated differently under HIPAA. I may charge a reasonable copy fee allowed by law.
  3. Ask me to amend a record you believe is wrong. I may deny the request in writing and explain how to appeal.
  4. Ask for a list of certain disclosures I have made.
  5. Ask me to limit how I use or share PHI. I am not always required to agree. I will agree not to share information with a health plan for an item or service you paid for in full out of pocket, unless the law requires the sharing.
  6. Ask to be contacted in a certain way (for example, only at an email you name). I will honor reasonable requests.
  7. Get notice if a breach of unsecured PHI affects you.
  8. Choose someone to act for you, if that person has legal authority.
  9. File a complaint without retaliation.

My duties

I must maintain the privacy of PHI, give you this notice, follow it, and notify you of a breach of unsecured PHI as required by law. I may change this notice. The new notice will apply to all PHI I keep. I will post the revised notice at mendandkindleco.com and give you a copy on request.

How to exercise rights or complain

Contact Marie Delabarrera, Privacy Officer, MAD CARE LLC, marie@mendandkindleco.com, (928) 471-5998.

You may also complain to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights, at https://www.hhs.gov/ocr or 1-800-368-1019.

Hawaiʻi licensing questions: Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Professional and Vocational Licensing.

Virginia licensing questions: Virginia Board of Counseling.

I will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

Emergencies

This practice is not an emergency or crisis service. If you are in crisis or thinking about suicide, call or text 988. If you are in immediate danger, call 911.

Acknowledgment: I will ask you to sign that you received this notice. Signing does not waive any rights. If you decline to sign, I will document that the notice was offered.