Privacy Policy

Sol Pediatrics, PLLC
Effective: August 10, 2026

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 mandates data privacy and security for safeguarding patient medical information.

This Notice of Privacy Practices (NPP) describes how I may use and disclose your protected health information (PHI) to carry out treatment, payment, and health care operations (TPO) and for other purposes required by law. It also discloses your rights to access and control your PHI and how you can get access to this information. Please review it carefully.

I reserve the right to change the terms of our NPP at any time. The new NPP will be effective for all PHI that I maintain at that time. I will provide you with a copy of the revised NPP by sending a copy to you in the mail upon request or providing one to you at your next appointment.

About this practice

Sol Pediatrics, PLLC creates a medical record of your health information to treat you, receive payment for services delivered, and comply with certain policies and laws. This practice rents space at a location shared with other independent practitioners. Sol Pediatrics, PLLC is an independent practice and is solely responsible for the care it provides. It is not responsible or liable for the practice of any other practitioner at this location, and they are not responsible for this practice. Records are stored separately, and no other practitioner at this location can access them without written permission or a permitted treatment disclosure.

My promise to you

I am required by law to protect the privacy of your health information, to give you this notice explaining our legal duties and privacy practices, and to follow the terms of the notice currently in effect. I am also required by law to notify you if you are affected by a breach of your unsecured protected health information.

How I may use and share your health information without your permission

For treatment. I share information with people involved in your care — primary care provider, therapist, pharmacy, laboratory, or a specialist I consult. When I consult another professional about a case, I make every effort not to reveal your identity, and the consultant is also bound to keep the information confidential.

For payment. I use your information to bill and collect payment from you. This practice does not bill insurance. If that changes, I will update this notice.

For health care operations. Running the practice — quality review, appointment reminders, licensing, scheduling, and business management. If I use an outside vendor (billing, EHR, transcription, answering service), I have a written contract requiring them to protect your information.

Limits to Confidentiality: Sometimes the law requires I share your PHI without your permission when:

A government agency is conducting health oversight activities, including the Washington Department of Health.
You file a complaint, board action, or lawsuit against us. I may then disclose information relevant to our defense.
I suspect a child has been abused or neglected. I am a mandated reporters and must report.
I have reasonable cause to believe a vulnerable adult has been abandoned, abused, financially exploited, or neglected. I must report.
I believe you or someone else is in imminent danger. I may take protective action — notifying potential victims, contacting police, seeking hospitalization, or contacting family or others who can help protect you.
A licensed health care provider has engaged in unprofessional conduct, or a provider's mental or physical condition creates a risk to patient safety. I am required to report this, including about us.
I prescribe a controlled substance. These are reported to the Washington Prescription Monitoring Program.
A court orders it. If I receive a subpoena without a court order, I will not release records without first taking steps to protect your privacy.
A public health authority, coroner, medical examiner, or workers' compensation claim requires it.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is investigating our compliance.

When I need your written permission

I will ask you to sign an authorization before sharing information with anyone else — a school, attorney, court (unless ordered), employer, coach, or a non-treating third party. Our authorization form lets you choose exactly what is shared — only that you are a patient here, only appointment times, only medications, or the full record. You can make different choices for different people.

I always need written permission before I share:

Substance use treatment information, which has extra legal protection
Information for any marketing purpose
Your information in exchange for payment

You can change your mind and cancel any authorization in writing at any time. Canceling does not undo what was already shared. I do not use your information for marketing, fundraising, advertising, testimonials, or research. Any teaching or professional presentation uses de-identified material only.

Confidentiality Policies

Confidentiality Notice & Adolescent Portal Access: Under federal law (the 21st Century Cures Act), I am generally required to share your health information electronically, including through our patient portal, Charm Health. At the same time, Washington law gives patients aged 13 and older the right to consent to their own mental health care and to keep that care confidential.

When a patient 13 or older consents to their own mental health treatment, the information about that care legally belongs to the patient. For that reason, portal access and proxy (parent/guardian) access are configured to protect the adolescent's rights while complying with applicable state and federal law — which may mean a parent or guardian cannot view certain portions of an adolescent's mental health record.

This means:

I cannot automatically share those confidential records with a parent or guardian through the portal or otherwise, unless the patient gives written permission using a Release of Information form.
A parent's portal (proxy) access may be limited or turned off for these confidential records to protect the patient's privacy.

Exception: I will share information with a parent, guardian, or other responsible adult without permission if I believe in good faith that it is necessary to protect the patient or someone else from serious harm. This includes but is not limited to

suicidal/homicidal risk
abuse/neglect
abandonment/financial exploitation

If I must tell a parent something, I will tell you first whenever I can. I will explain what I am going to say and why and give you the chance to be there or say it yourself. Safety comes first, but I do not use that as an excuse to stop respecting your privacy in everything else.

For parents: You will not be left in the dark. At the first visit I tell you exactly what I will and will not be able to share, so there are no surprises. Confidentiality within limits is what makes it possible for your child to tell me the truth about how they are doing. At age 18, parent access ends automatically.

Custody situations: If parents are separated or divorced, please give me the parenting plan or court order so I know who can make health care decisions and receive records.

How I contact you, and what to do in a crisis

You choose how I contact you on the Communication Preferences form, and you can change it at any time.

Please understand cell phones, text messages, and email are not fully secure, and privacy cannot be guaranteed on these channels. Our patient portal is the most secure option.

This is not an emergency or 24-hour practice.

Call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room for a medical or psychiatric emergency

Voicemail and portal messages are checked during business hours only, and I aim to respond within one business day. Messages are not monitored overnight, on weekends, or on holidays.

In a crisis, do not wait for a call back:

Call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room for a medical or psychiatric emergency
Call or text 988 — Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, 24/7
Washington Recovery Help Line / Regional Crisis Line: 1-866-789-1511, 24/7
Crisis Text Line: text HOME to 741741
WA Poison Center, Primary Phone: 1-800-222-1222

Your Rights

To exercise any of these rights, submit a written request to Rachel Horak at the address below.

Get a list of who I shared PHI with. This refers to certain disclosures from the past six years. This does not include treatment, payment, operations, disclosures you authorized, or disclosures to you. One list per year is free, additional lists are subject to fees.
Ask me to contact you in a specific way. A certain phone number, no voicemails, no texts, mail to a different address. I will say yes to all reasonable requests and will not ask why. This matters a great deal for teens, and I offer it at the first visit rather than waiting to be asked.
Ask me to limit what I share. I do not have to agree to every request, but if I agree I will honor it except in a medical emergency. If you pay in full for a service yourself, you may tell me not to share information about it with a health plan, and I must honor that. This practice is fully self-pay and sends nothing to health plans.
Choose someone to act for you. A person with medical power of attorney or legal guardianship may exercise your rights, subject to the teen and parent section above.
Get a paper copy of this notice, even if you agreed to receive it electronically. It is also posted in our office and on our website.
Be told if your information is breached.
File a complaint. I will never retaliate against you for filing a complaint, and I will never require you to give up your privacy rights to receive care.

Privacy Officer: Rachel Horak, DNP, ARNP, CPNP-PC,

509-426-4361 | info@solpediatrics.com

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights:

200 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20201 | 1-877-696-6775 | www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints/

Washington State Department of Health, Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission: P.O. Box 47850, Olympia, WA 98504-7850 | 360-236-4700

Our Responsibilities

I must keep your health information private and secure.
I must notify you promptly of a breach that may have compromised your information.
I must follow the duties and practices described here and give you a copy of this notice.
I will not use or share your information other than as described here unless you tell me in writing that I may, and you can change your mind at any time.

If you would like to get a copy of your health record: You may request it in a specific form or format, and if I keep the record electronically, I will provide an electronic copy in the form and format you request when it is readily producible; otherwise, we will agree on another readable electronic format. You may also direct me in writing to send the copy to a third party you designate. I will respond within 30 days, and if I need more time I will tell you in writing and may take up to 30 more days. I may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee and will tell you the cost first. In limited situations I may say no — for example, if release could seriously endanger someone's safety. If I say no, I will tell you in writing why, and you may have that decision reviewed by another licensed professional who was not involved in the original decision. I will still release the parts I can.

Ask me to correct your record: I will respond within 60 days. I may decline if I believe the information is accurate and complete and will explain why in writing.

Protecting your privacy is central to the care I provide—if you have any questions about this notice or your rights, please contact me, Rachel Horak, at 509-426-4361 or info@solpediatrics.com