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Privacy Policy

Medela LLC has created this privacy policy (“Privacy Policy”) in order to demonstrate our firm commitment to adhering to federal and state privacy laws and industry guidelines in order to protect your privacy.  This Privacy Policy discloses our information gathering and dissemination practices for the site available at www.MedelaSuction.com and any related services or applications owned by Medela LLC (this “Site”).  This Privacy Policy applies only to this Site, not to any other web sites that may be accessible from here.  Please note that when you access any external links from this Site, they may have different privacy policies specific to those sites. We encourage you to read all applicable privacy policies.
 
By clicking the “I Agree” button or by otherwise accessing any material on this Site or using any of the services provided, you agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy.  When you submit information via this Site, you consent to the collection, use and disclosure of that information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.  If you do not agree, please do not use or access this Site or our services.
 
Please remember that this Privacy Policy applies only to information collected by our Site.  We are not responsible for the privacy of any information you reveal or post in any public forum (e.g., message board, blog, personal page, etc.) or through any public feature available on our Site, or for the privacy practices of websites that are operated or owned by third parties. 
 
By visiting this Site, you accept that your visit and any dispute over privacy is subject to this Privacy Policy and our Terms and Conditions of Use.  If you have any concern about a privacy issue, please contact us as directed in this Privacy Policy.  Medela LLC reserves the right to update this Privacy Policy.
 
What Personal Information Do We Gather From Those Who Visit Our Site?
When you visit the Site, you may provide us with two types of information: information you voluntarily submit, and information that we automatically collect as you browse our Site.
 
Information You Voluntarily Submit
We collect and store any information you enter on our Site, or provide to us in offline contacts we have with you.  Some of this information may be personally identifiable (that is, information that can be uniquely identified with you, such as your name, business name, address, phone number, fax number, email address, etc.).  When you visit the Site, we will not collect any personally identifiable information about you unless you provide it to us voluntarily.  Also, if you place an order, you may be required to provide financial information.
 
Information is collected from visitors to the Site in the following areas:
  • Registration Forms
    If you choose to register for the Site, or for specific events, contests and newsletters on various areas of the Site, we will generally ask you to provide both personal and demographic information, such as contact information and preferences regarding the event or material for which you desire to register, most of which is required to complete the registration.  We will inform you which information is optional.  You may visit our Site without registering, but you may not be able to access certain areas or services.
  • Order Forms
    Some areas of the Site may allow you to order products or services, whether or not for a fee.  In connection with these transactions, we collect data necessary to complete the transaction and that is furnished by you.  This may include contact information, date of birth, email address, telephone number and your credit card number.  We may also collect information about gift recipients so that we can fulfill a gift purchase.
  • Surveys
    At times, you may be asked to complete survey questions that appear on the Site.
  • Employment Applications
    You may submit information related to job opportunities with Medela LLC.
  • Discussion Forums
    We may make chat rooms, forums, message boards, and/or news groups available to our users. Please remember that any information that is disclosed in these areas becomes public information and you should exercise caution when deciding to disclose your personal information.
  • Wish Lists
    We may allow you to create Wish Lists of Medela products that can be shared with family and friends by email. To send those emails, we will collect the email addresses that you give us in order to send the Wish List information to your friends and family. 
  • Email
    On several screens of our Site, you also have an opportunity to communicate with us by email. You may also choose to provide your email address to receive communications from us or third parties.
  • Information We Automatically Collect
    When you browse and navigate through our Site, certain information may be passively collected (that is, gathered without you actively providing the information) using various technologies and means. Like most web site operators, we track IP addresses (the Internet address of your computer), the web pages visited and the time of visits, and other clickstream data.  The only other type of information automatically provided to us is the type of computer, operating system and browser you are using.  This information is provided by your browser, which we use to improve the performance of our Site.
    We may also place small data files, called “cookies”, in the browser file of your computer’s hard drive.  These cookies automatically identify your browser to our server whenever you interact with the Site.  We use the cookies to record Site statistics.  Most browsers automatically accept the cookies, but you usually can change your browser setting to prevent the acceptance of cookies.  Certain web pages may not function properly if you choose not to accept cookies.
    We do not collect personally identifiable information automatically, but we may tie information collected automatically to your previously submitted personally identifiable information.
How We Use Your Personal Information
We use your personal information to communicate with you if and when necessary in connection with your use of our Site, to respond to your questions, or to send you material and information you request. 
We may collect, track and/or use your information to:
  • Personalize your site experience and to allow us to deliver the type of content and product information in which you are most interested.
  • Consider your suggestions.
  • Possibly respond directly to you for clarification.
  • Process your request for materials if you make one.
  • Try to and answer your questions if you ask them.
  • Register you for an event, contest or sweepstakes, if you request it.
  • Store your grades for our education programs and track your continuing education credits
  • Provide you with email messages and other information regarding upcoming events, new services and general information about our products and services. (Note: you may elect not to receive these communications, either when you initially register at our Site, or at any time thereafter. See the section of this Privacy Policy called “Choice/Opt Out.”).
We may also use your web site information in order to help diagnose problems with our Site.  We may use all information we collect to analyze statistical use patterns and demographic data (basically, where our visitors come from and what demographic characteristics they have) and to improve our Site to better serve our customers.  We use your IP address to help diagnose problems with our servers, and to administer our Site.  Your IP address is used to help identify you and your shopping cart and to gather broad demographic information.  We may also prepare and keep statistical records and other data about you and other users of our Site, but we do that in a way that does not identify you or any other user personally.  We may hire third parties to help us collect and analyze such data, and we may share such statistical data with third parties.  Again, such statistical data will not specifically identify you or any other user.  We use this information to help us make our Site more useful to visitors - to learn about the number of visitors to our Site, what part of the Site they are interested in, how long the use the Site, and the types of technology our visitors use.
 
Disclosing Your Personal Information To Others
Except in the limited circumstances stated in this paragraph, we do not currently sell, rent, license, trade or otherwise disclose the personal information of our Site visitors to unaffiliated third parties, but may do so in the future.  We may disclose your information to service providers who assist us in operating the Site or conducting our business.  We may also share such information among our affiliates as necessary to provide you with the information and services you request or in which you may otherwise be interested.  We may disclose information about you if and when we believe it is necessary to comply with any law, rule, court order, or subpoena, or to enforce our legal rights or the Terms and Conditions of Use, or to protect our business, property and operations, or in connection with a sale, acquisition, merger or other business combination or assignment of our business with or to a third party or in the event of a liquidation, dissolution, reorganization, or in situations involving threats to the physical safety of any person.  We may also disclose non-personally identifiable visitor information to other parties for marketing, advertising or other uses.
 
Some areas of the Site may allow you to conduct e-commerce transactions (purchasing products, event registration, donation, game and sweepstakes participation, etc.). In connection with such transactions, we collect data necessary to complete the transaction that is furnished by you.  This information may be furnished to a third party in order to facilitate the transaction.
We feature public forums where you and other users of our Site can communicate with one another, such as the Medela Community section of the Site.  THIS PRIVACY POLICY DOES NOT PROTECT YOU WHEN YOU USE OUR PUBLIC FORUMS OR PROVIDE INFORMATION (INCLUDING PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION) ABOUT YOURSELF THROUGH THE PUBLIC PROFILE FEATURE OR THROUGH ANY COMMUNITY AREA AVAILABLE ON OUR SITE.  You should be aware that any information shared in a public forum such as a message board, blog, personal page, posting, group, bulletin board is public information and may be seen or collected by third parties that do not adhere to our Privacy Policy, although the availability of personal pages or groups identified as “private” may be limited to certain permitted users.  You should think carefully before disclosing any information in any public forum, on our Site.
 
Some of our advertisers may display ads on the Site that solicit, or contain technology to collect, information about our users.  This information is collected and used by our advertisers, and is outside of our control.  If you have any questions about an advertisement, you should contact the responsible advertiser directly.
 
NOTICE OF INFORMATION PRACTICES AND PRIVACY STATEMENT: IN REFERENCE TO HIPAA AND YOUR PHI (PERSONAL HEALTH INFORMATION)
 
NOTE: In the event of a conflict between this Privacy Policy and the Privacy Policy of your Group Health Plan (“GHP”), your GHP will be responsible for following its own Privacy Policy and may not be obligated to follow this Privacy Policy.
 
Your Rights
You have the right to:
  • Get a copy of your health and claims records
  • Correct your health and claims records
  • Request confidential communication
  • Ask us to limit the information we share
  • Get a list of those with whom we’ve shared your information
  • Get a copy of this privacy 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 the way that we use and share information as we:
  • Answer coverage questions from your family and friends
  • Market our services and sell your information
Our Uses and Disclosures We may use and share your information as we:
  • Help manage the health care treatment you receive
  • Run our organization
  • Help with public health and safety issues
  • Do research
  • Comply with the law
  • Address workers’ compensation, law enforcement, and other government requests
  • Respond to lawsuits and legal actions
More About 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 health and claims records
{C}You can ask to see or get a copy of your health and claims records and other health information we have about you. Ask us how to do this.
{C}We will provide a copy or a summary of your health and claims records, usually within 30 days of your request. We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee.
 
Ask us to correct health and claims records
{C}You can ask us to correct your health and claims records if you think they are incorrect or incomplete. Ask us how to do this.
{C}We may say “no” to your request, but we’ll tell you why in writing within 60 days.
 
Request confidential communications
{C}You can ask us to contact you in a specific way (for example, home or office phone) or to send mail to a different address.
{C}We will consider all reasonable requests, and must say “yes” if you tell us you would be in danger if we do not.
 
Ask us to limit what we use or share
{C}You can ask us not to use or share certain health information for treatment, payment, or our operations.
{C}We are not required to agree to your request, and we may say “no” if it would affect your care.
 
Get a list of those with whom we’ve shared information
{C}You can ask for a list (accounting) of the times we’ve shared your health information for six years prior to the date you ask, who we shared it with, and why.
{C}We will include all the disclosures except for those about 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 will charge a reasonable, cost-based fee if you ask for another one within 12 months.
 
Get a copy of this privacy notice
{C}{C}{C}You can ask for a paper copy of this notice at any time, even if you have agreed to receive the notice electronically. We will provide you with a paper copy promptly.
 
Choose someone to act for you
{C}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 health information.
{C}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
{C}You can complain if you feel we have violated your rights by contacting us using the information at the end of this Privacy Policy.
{C}{C}{C}You can 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/
{C}We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.
 
More About 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 choice to tell us to:
{C}Share information with your family, close friends, or others involved in payment for your care
 
If you are not able to tell us your preference, for example if you are unconscious, we may go ahead and share your information if we believe it is in your best 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:
{C}Marketing purposes
{C}Sale of your information
 
More About Our Uses and Disclosures
How do we typically use or share your health information?
We typically use or share your health information in the following ways:
 
Run our organization
{C}We can use and disclose your information to run our organization and contact you when necessary.
 
Example: We use health information about you to develop better services for you.
 
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 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.
 
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.
 
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.
 
Our Responsibilities
  • We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your protected health information.
  • 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 this notice 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.
  • For more information see: www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/consumers/noticepp.html
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 upon request and on our website.
 
Links to other sites


We may create links to other web sites that we think may be of interest to you. These links are provided solely as a convenience to users and should not be construed as an affiliation with such sites.  We do not endorse or review any of the content, items or services on any other web sites including any website we link to, or any website that may link to our website, and our Privacy Policy applies only to your use of our Site.  You access and use such other sites, including the content, items and services on those sites, solely at your own risk.  These linked sites may collect personally identifiable information from you. Medela LLC has not reviewed, has no control over and is not responsible for these other sites, their content (including any references to or statements regarding Medela or its products), collection of information or their privacy policies.  We have not reviewed the privacy policies of any web sites we link to our Site, and you should read the privacy policies of each site you visit to determine what information that site may collect about you.  If you would like information on any other party’s privacy policy, you should contact that party directly.  Medela LLC makes no representations or warranties with respect to the content, ownership or legality of any such linked site.  You acknowledge and agree that Medela LLC has no responsibility or liability for the availability of such external sites, or for the content, advertising, products or other materials available through such sites. 
 
Social Media sites
Our Site may contain links to third party social media sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube.  The operators of such social media sites may collect personal information and use and disclose such information in accordance with their own privacy policies.  For each such site, you should check with the site operator regarding its own policies regarding the collection, use and disclosure of personal information.
 
Security
We have put in place physical, electronic, and managerial procedures to attempt to safeguard and help prevent unauthorized access, maintain data security, and correctly use the information we collect online.  However, please remember that no transmission of data over the Internet or any wireless network can be guaranteed to be 100% secure.  As a result, while we strive to protect your personal information, we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information that you transmit to us or from us, and you do so at your own risk.  When you place an order or access your personal information, we offer the use of a secure server.  Once we receive your transmission, we use our best efforts to ensure its security on our systems.  Medela LLC, however, will have no liability for disclosure of information obtained due to errors in transmissions or the unauthorized intervention of third parties.  The safety and security of your information also depends on you.  If you have access to password-protected features, never share your password with anyone else, notify us promptly if you believe your password security has been breached, and remember to log off of this Site before you leave your computer.  Any personally identifiable information or sensitive data that you disclose through any discussion boards or other public online forums hosted on this Site, may be collected and used by others.  We recommend caution when giving out personal information to others in these public online forums.  When you provide information on these forums, you do so at your own risk.  The information you share may be viewed by any other user of this Site.
 
Changes in Medela LLC's Privacy Policy
You should review this Privacy Policy carefully, because if you do not agree with our practices, your ultimate choice is not to use this Site.  Remember, by using our Site, you consent to our collection and the use of your personal information as described in this Privacy Policy.  If we change our privacy procedures, we will post these changes on our Site.  You have the opportunity to review our Privacy Policy each time you use the Site so that you are aware of any modifications made to these policies.  Your continued use of the Site (following posting of the revised Privacy Policy) means that you accept and agree to the terms of the revised Privacy Policy.
 
Choice/Opt Out
Our Site provides users the opportunity to opt-out of receiving communications from us at the point where we request information about the visitor.  If you have submitted personally identifiable information through the Site, or if someone else has submitted your Personally Identifiable Information through the Site, and you would like to have that information deleted from our marketing databases, please contact us via email.  We will then use reasonable efforts to remove your personally identifiable information from our files.  You also may contact us to request the Personally Identifiable Information that Medela LLC has collected about you through the Site.  Medela LLC will use commercially reasonable efforts to supply you with this information and correct any factual inaccuracies in this information.  You have the following options for reviewing or removing your information from our database to no longer receive communication from us.  If you request your account information be deleted from our database, we may maintain information about individual sales transactions for recordkeeping and servicing.
 
1.     You can send an email from our Privacy Email Submission Form.
2.     You can send mail to the following postal address:
Medela LLC
Attn: Privacy Policy
1101 Corporate Dr.
McHenry, IL 60050
 
Please note that due to email production schedules, you may receive an email message from us after you have provided your opt-out notice.
 
CHILDREN VISITING THE SITE
This Site is not intended for children under the age of 13.  We will not knowingly collect personally identifiable information from site visitors in this age group.  We encourage parents to talk to their children about their use of the Internet and the information they disclose online.  If a child has provided us with Personally Identifiable Information, a parent or guardian of that child may contact us via email at the above email address if they would like this information deleted from our records.  We will use reasonable efforts to delete the child's information from our databases.

Questions About Our Privacy Policy
If you have questions about our Site and our Privacy Policy or Terms and Conditions of Use, please feel free to contact us by filling out our Privacy Email Submission Form.  The revised Privacy Policy will be posted on this Site If the Privacy Policy changes.  Please check back periodically, and especially before you provide any Personally Identifiable Information.  Changes will not apply retroactively to personal information that was collected before the changes to the Privacy Policy, except as may be required by law.