Notice of Privacy Practices
Her Mental Health PLLC
Effective Date: October 6, 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.
Last Updated: October 14, 2026
Privacy Contact: Saba Rastegar, DNP, PMHNP-BC, IBCLC
Email: info@hermentalhealth.org
Telephone: 703-970-7048
Mailing Address:
Her Mental Health PLLC
8401 Mayland Dr Ste S
Richmond, VA, 23294
Your Information. Your Rights. Our Responsibilities.
This Notice of Privacy Practices describes how Her Mental Health PLLC may use and disclose your protected health information, how you can access your information, and your privacy rights.
This notice applies to the outpatient psychiatric services provided by Her Mental Health PLLC, including virtual psychiatric evaluations, medication management, treatment planning, and related mental health services for patients located in Virginia and Maryland.
Please review this notice carefully.
1. Our Commitment to Your Privacy
We are committed to protecting the privacy and security of your health information. As a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner practice, we maintain records related to your psychiatric history, evaluations, diagnoses, medications, treatment plans, clinical progress, billing, and other services we provide.
We are required by applicable law to protect your protected health information (PHI), provide this notice of our privacy practices, and follow the terms of the notice currently in effect.
We will not use or disclose your PHI except as described in this notice or as otherwise permitted or required by law.
2. How We May Use and Disclose Your Health Information
We may use or disclose your PHI for the following purposes, as permitted by applicable law.
Treatment. We may use and disclose your PHI to provide and coordinate your care. For example, we may review your medication history, document your psychiatric evaluation, or communicate with another treating health care professional when permitted by law.
Payment. We may use and disclose your PHI to obtain payment for services. For example, we may submit a claim to your health insurance plan or verify your eligibility for coverage.
Health Care Operations. We may use and disclose your PHI for permitted practice operations. For example, we may review clinical documentation for quality assurance, conduct compliance activities, or evaluate the performance of our electronic health record systems.
Appointment and Treatment Communications. We may contact you about appointments, prescriptions, treatment-related matters, billing, and practice operations using the contact information you provide, subject to applicable law and reasonable requests for confidential communications.
Business Associates. We may disclose information to service providers who support our practice, such as electronic health record platforms, billing services, secure communication providers, and information technology vendors, when legally permitted and subject to required safeguards and agreements.
Legal Requirements and Public Safety. We may use or disclose information when required or permitted by law, including certain public health reporting, mandatory reporting of suspected abuse or neglect, health oversight, valid legal proceedings, law enforcement requests, and disclosures necessary to address certain serious safety threats.
We will limit disclosures as required by applicable law.
3. Virtual Mental Health Care and Electronic Communications
Our practice provides outpatient psychiatric services through telehealth. We use electronic systems to conduct appointments, maintain clinical records, communicate with patients, and manage practice operations.
We take reasonable and appropriate measures to protect electronic health information. However, no electronic communication or internet-based system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.
Depending on your preferences and the communication methods available, we may communicate through a secure patient portal, telephone, voicemail, email, or text message.
You may request confidential communications using a particular method or at a particular location. We will accommodate reasonable requests as required by law.
Please avoid sending highly sensitive clinical information through ordinary email, text messages, or website contact forms unless we have specifically advised you to use that method.
Telehealth services are subject to applicable licensing, privacy, and other legal requirements in the state where you are physically located when receiving care.
4. Special Protections for Psychiatric and Substance Use Disorder Records
Psychiatric and mental health records are protected by HIPAA and applicable Virginia and Maryland laws.
Psychotherapy notes, as specifically defined under HIPAA, receive special federal protection and generally require separate authorization for use or disclosure, subject to limited legal exceptions. Ordinary psychiatric progress notes, medication-management records, diagnoses, and treatment plans are not automatically classified as psychotherapy notes.
Her Mental Health PLLC does not provide substance use disorder treatment. If the practice receives or maintains records subject to additional federal or state confidentiality protections, including applicable protections under 42 CFR Part 2, the practice will handle those records in accordance with the laws governing them.
We do not automatically disclose your psychiatric information to family members, partners, employers, or other individuals. Disclosures may be made when authorized by you or otherwise permitted or required by law.
5. Your Rights Regarding Your Health Information
You have the following rights, subject to applicable legal requirements and exceptions.
Access your records. You may request to inspect or obtain copies of your health records, including electronic records. Some legally permitted exceptions may apply.
Request an amendment. You may ask us to correct information you believe is inaccurate or incomplete. We may deny a request in certain circumstances permitted by law and will explain your rights if we do so.
Request confidential communications. You may ask us to contact you at a particular telephone number, email address, mailing address, or other location. We will accommodate reasonable requests as required by law.
Request restrictions. You may ask us to restrict certain uses or disclosures of your PHI. We are not required to agree to every request, except where the law requires otherwise. For example, HIPAA generally requires us to honor a request not to disclose information about a service to your health plan for payment or health care operations when you have paid for that service in full out of pocket, unless disclosure is otherwise required by law.
Request an accounting of disclosures. You may request a list of certain disclosures of your PHI made during the six years preceding your request, subject to legal exceptions.
Obtain a copy of this notice. You may request a paper copy at any time, even if you received or viewed this notice electronically.
Choose a personal representative. A person legally authorized to act on your behalf may exercise your privacy rights as permitted by law.
Receive notice of a breach. We will notify you of a breach of unsecured PHI when notification is required by law.
To exercise these rights, contact us using the information listed at the beginning of this notice. We may ask you to submit a written request or verify your identity as permitted by law.
6. Uses and Disclosures Requiring Authorization
Uses and disclosures not described in this notice will be made only with your written authorization, unless otherwise permitted or required by law. Certain uses and disclosures require your written authorization, including most uses and disclosures of specially protected psychotherapy notes, certain marketing activities, and the sale of protected health information, subject to applicable exceptions.
Information disclosed to a person or organization outside our practice may be subject to redisclosure by the recipient and may no longer be protected by the federal HIPAA Privacy Rule. Other federal or state laws may continue to protect the information, depending on the circumstances.
You may revoke an authorization in writing at any time, except to the extent we have already acted in reliance on it or another legal exception applies.
Nothing in this notice authorizes disclosures that would otherwise be prohibited by applicable federal or state law.
7. Website Privacy
This Notice of Privacy Practices addresses protected health information handled in connection with health care services. It is not a complete description of every type of information that may be collected through our public website.
Our website may collect information you voluntarily submit through contact forms or appointment inquiries, as well as certain technical information associated with website use. Please do not submit detailed medical histories, psychiatric symptoms, medication lists, or other sensitive clinical information through a general website contact form.
Information submitted through our website may be handled by third-party service providers. We take appropriate steps to protect information as required by applicable law.
For additional details regarding website data collection, cookies, analytics, and other website-specific practices, please review our Website Privacy Policy.
8. Our Responsibilities and Changes to This Notice
We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your PHI, provide this notice, follow the terms of the notice currently in effect, and notify you of breaches when required by law.
We may revise this notice from time to time. Any revised notice will apply to PHI we maintain as permitted by law. The current version will be made available on our website and upon request.
9. Virginia and Maryland Privacy Requirements
Our practice serves patients located in Virginia and Maryland. We comply with applicable federal privacy requirements and the state laws governing the services and records involved.
State law may provide additional protections for mental health records, substance use disorder information, minors' records, and other sensitive information. Where applicable law requires greater protection or imposes additional restrictions, we will follow those requirements.
10. Questions or Complaints
If you have questions about this notice or believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may contact us:
Her Mental Health PLLC
Privacy Contact: Saba Rastegar, DNP, PMHNP-BC, IBCLC
Email: info@hermentalhealth.org
Telephone: 703-970-7048
Mailing Address:
Her Mental Health PLLC
8401 Mayland Dr Ste S
Richmond, VA, 23294
You may also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights:
https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/filing-a-complaint/index.html
We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.
11. Acknowledgment of Receipt
We will make a good-faith effort to obtain your acknowledgment that you received this Notice of Privacy Practices, as required by law. If we cannot obtain an acknowledgment, we will document our efforts and the reason.
Your acknowledgment confirms receipt of this notice. It is not an authorization to disclose your health information or a waiver of your privacy rights.