Notice of Privacy Practices

Notice of Privacy Practices

Your Information. Your Rights. Our Responsibilities.

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.

In this notice, "we," "us" and "the practice" mean Veneers & Co. Dental Group, the dental practice of Faraz Farahnik Inc., APC, including Dr. Faraz Farahnik, DDS, and everyone who works at our office. "Health information" means information that identifies you and relates to your dental or medical health, your care or payment for your care. This includes your records, x-rays, photos and billing information.

i. Summary

Your rights. You have the right to:

• get a copy of your paper or electronic dental record
• ask us to correct your record
• ask us to contact you confidentially
• ask us to limit the information we share
• get a list of the people we have shared your information with
• get a copy of this notice
• choose someone to act for you
• file a complaint if you believe your privacy rights have been violated

Your choices. You have some choices in how we use and share information when we:

• tell family and friends about your condition or care
• provide disaster relief
• market our services, including using before-and-after photos (only with your written permission)

We never sell your information. We do not fundraise.

Our uses and disclosures. We may use and share your information as we:

• treat you
• run our practice
• bill for your services
• help with public health and safety issues
• comply with the law
• respond to organ and tissue donation requests
• work with a medical examiner or funeral director
• address workers' compensation, law enforcement and other government requests
• respond to lawsuits and legal actions
• do research, only as the law allows

Notice of Privacy Practices

Your rights

When it comes to your health information, you have certain rights. This section explains your rights and some of our responsibilities to help you.

Get a copy of your dental record

• You can ask to see or get a paper or electronic copy of your dental record and other health information we have about you. Ask us how to do this; we may ask you to make the request in writing.
• California law gives you these timelines: we will let you inspect your records during business hours within 5 working days, and send copies within 15 days after we receive your request (Health & Safety Code §123110). Federal law sets an outer limit of 30 days. We follow the shorter California timelines.
• We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee for copies, as federal and California law allow. We will not withhold your records because of an unpaid bill.
• We may ask you to verify your identity before we release records.

Ask us to correct your dental record

• You can ask us to correct health information about you that you think is incorrect or incomplete. Ask us how to do this.
• We may say "no" to your request, but we'll tell you why in writing within 60 days. California law also lets you add a written statement (an addendum) to your record about any item you believe is incorrect or incomplete.

Request confidential communications

• You can ask us to contact you in a specific way (for example, a cell phone instead of a home phone) or to send mail to a different address.
• We will say "yes" to all reasonable requests.

Ask us to limit what we use or share

• You can ask us not to use or share certain health information for treatment, payment or our operations. We are not required to agree, and we may say "no" if it would affect your care.
• If you pay for a service or health care item out of pocket in full, you can ask us not to share that information with your health insurer for payment or our operations. We will say "yes" unless a law requires us to share it.

Get a list of those with whom we've shared information

• You can ask for a list (an accounting) of the times we've shared your health information in the six years before the date you ask, who we shared it with, and why.
• The list will include all disclosures except those for treatment, payment and health care operations, and certain other disclosures (such as any you asked us to make). We'll provide one accounting a year for free, but we may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee if you ask for another one within 12 months.

Get a copy of this privacy notice

• You can ask for a paper copy of this notice at any time, even if you have agreed to receive it electronically. We will give you a paper copy promptly. It is also posted at our office and at veneersco.com/notice-of-privacy-practices/.

Choose someone to act for you

• If you have given someone dental or medical power of attorney, or if someone is your legal guardian or conservator, that person can exercise your rights and make choices about your health information.
• We will make sure the person has this authority and can act for you before we take any action.

File a complaint if you feel your rights are violated

• You can complain if you feel we have violated your rights by contacting our Privacy Officer (see "Contact" below).
• You can also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights by sending a letter to 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201, calling 1-877-696-6775, or visiting www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints/.
• We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

Notice of Privacy Practices

Your choices

For certain health information, you can tell us your choices about what we share. If you have a clear preference for how we share your information in the situations described below, talk to us. Tell us what you want us to do, and we will follow your instructions.

In these cases, you have both the right and the choice to tell us to:

• share information with your family, close friends or others involved in your care or in paying for it
• share information in a disaster relief situation

If you are not able to tell us your preference, for example if you are unconscious, we may share your information if, in our professional judgment, sharing it is in your interest. We may also share your information when needed to lessen a serious and imminent threat to health or safety.

In these cases, we never share your information unless you give us written permission (an "authorization"):

• Marketing purposes. This includes before-and-after photos, videos, your name or initials, your words (testimonials) and details of your treatment on our website, social media, Google Business Profile or ads. We use them only with a signed authorization that names each use you agree to and has an end date. You do not have to sign it, and your care never depends on it.
• Sale of your information. We do not sell health information, and we will not.
• Most sharing of psychotherapy notes. (We do not expect to keep these.)

Fundraising. We do not use your information to raise funds.

Cancelling a permission you gave us. You can cancel (revoke) an authorization at any time by giving or sending a written request to our Privacy Officer. Cancelling stops new uses from the date we receive it. It cannot undo what was already shared while the authorization was in effect. For before-and-after photos, we will remove them from our website and our own social media and advertising accounts within 30 days of receiving your written request. Copies that others have already made or printed cannot be recalled.

Notice of Privacy Practices

Our uses and disclosures

i. How do we typically use or share your health information?

We typically use or share your health information in the following ways.

Treat you. We can use your health information and share it with other professionals who are treating you. Example: Dr. Farahnik shares your x-rays with a dental laboratory making your veneers, or with a periodontist or oral surgeon on our team, or another dentist you are referred to.

Run our practice. We can use and share your health information to run our practice, improve your care and contact you when necessary. Example: we use your information to schedule appointments, send appointment reminders and review the quality of our care.

Bill for your services. We can use and share your health information to bill and get payment from health plans or other entities. Example: we give information about your treatment to your dental insurance plan so it will pay for your services, or to a financing company only with the information needed to process a payment plan you applied for.

Business associates. Some services are provided for us by companies we hire, such as our practice-management software and dental laboratories. They may receive your information only to do that work, and only under a written agreement (a business associate agreement) that requires them to protect it.

ii. How else can we use or share your health information?

We are allowed or required to share your information in other ways, usually in ways that contribute to the public good, such as public health and research. We have to meet many conditions in the law before we can share your information for these purposes. For more information see www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/consumers/index.html.

Help with public health and safety issues. We can share health information about you for certain situations, such as:

• preventing disease
• helping with product recalls
• reporting adverse reactions to medications or dental products
• reporting suspected abuse, neglect or domestic violence
• preventing or reducing a serious threat to anyone's health or safety

Do research. We can use or share your information for health research only as federal and California law allow. We do not currently take part in research.

Comply with the law. We will share information about you if state or federal laws require it, including with the Department of Health and Human Services if it wants to see that we're complying with federal privacy law, and with the Dental Board of California as the law requires.

Respond to organ and tissue donation requests. We can share health information about you with organ procurement organizations.

Work with a medical examiner or funeral director. We can share health information with a coroner, medical examiner or funeral director when an individual dies.

Address workers' compensation, law enforcement and other government requests. We can use or share health information about you:

• for workers' compensation claims
• for law enforcement purposes or with a law enforcement official, as the law allows
• with health oversight agencies for activities authorized by law
• for special government functions such as military, national security and presidential protective services

Respond to lawsuits and legal actions. We can share health information about you in response to a court or administrative order, or in response to a subpoena, as federal and California law allow.

iii. California law

California's Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (Civil Code §56 and following) and other California laws sometimes give you more protection than federal law. When California law is stricter, we follow it. For example:

• We need your written authorization, meeting California's requirements, before using your information for marketing.
• California limits the disclosure of information about certain sensitive services (for example, reproductive or sexual health care, HIV test results, and mental health care) and about care that a minor may legally consent to. We follow those limits.
• If there is a breach of your unsecured information, we will notify you as federal law requires, and as California law requires where it applies (Civil Code §1798.82).

iv. Substance use disorder records

We are not a substance use disorder treatment program. If we ever receive records about you from a substance use disorder treatment program covered by federal law (42 CFR Part 2), those records, or testimony describing their contents, will not be used or shared in a civil, criminal, administrative or legislative proceeding against you unless you give written consent or a court orders it after you are given notice and a chance to be heard, as 42 CFR Part 2 provides. A court order authorizing use or disclosure must be accompanied by a subpoena or other legal requirement compelling disclosure before the record is used or shared.

v. Records of Dr. Farahnik's former practice

Dr. Farahnik is the custodian of patient records from a former dental practice that he operated in the same suite, which has closed. Those records are protected as described in this notice, and former patients have the same rights to see and get copies of them. To request them, call (818) 658-9285 or see veneersco.com/patient-records/.

Notice of Privacy Practices

Our responsibilities

For more information see www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/consumers/noticepp.html.

• We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your protected health information and to give you this notice of our legal duties and privacy practices.
• We will let you know promptly if a breach occurs that may have compromised the privacy or security of your information.
• We must follow the duties and privacy practices described in the notice currently in effect, and give you a copy of it.
• We will not use or share your information other than as described here unless you tell us we can in writing. If you tell us we can, you may change your mind at any time. Let us know in writing if you change your mind.
• When we share information as this notice allows, the person or organization that receives it may share it again, and it may no longer be protected by federal privacy law. California law may still protect it.

Notice of Privacy Practices

Changes to the terms of this notice

We can change the terms of this notice, and the changes will apply to all information we have about you. The new notice will be available on request, in our office and on our website (veneersco.com/notice-of-privacy-practices/), and will show its effective date at the top of the first page.

Notice of Privacy Practices

Contact

Privacy Officer, Veneers & Co. Dental Group, 16260 Ventura Blvd, Suite 730, Encino, CA 91436 · Phone: (818) 658-9285

Notice of Privacy Practices

Effective date

This notice is effective October 2, 2026.

This notice applies to: Veneers & Co. Dental Group (Faraz Farahnik Inc., APC), 16260 Ventura Blvd, Suite 730, Encino, CA 91436, including Dr. Faraz Farahnik, DDS, and all dentists, the periodontist, oral surgeons, hygienists, assistants and staff who work at that office.

(End of patient-facing notice.)