Notice of Privacy Practices
Full Circle Counseling and Wellness
Effective Date: 10/31/2026
Office Address: 2000 Old West Chester Pike, 2nd Floor, Havertown, PA 19083
Services: In-person counseling and virtual therapy throughout Pennsylvania
THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION MAY BE USED OR DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN ACCESS THAT INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.
1. Our Commitment to Your Privacy
At Full Circle Counseling and Wellness, we are committed to protecting your privacy and maintaining the confidentiality of your personal health information.
We create and maintain records of the services you receive to provide quality care, coordinate treatment, process payments, and comply with legal and professional requirements.
We are required by law to protect your Protected Health Information (PHI), provide you with this Notice of Privacy Practices, notify you following a breach of unsecured PHI when required by law, and follow the terms of the notice currently in effect.
This notice applies to services provided both in person at our Havertown office and virtually through telehealth.
2. How We May Use or Disclose Your Information
We may use or disclose your PHI without separate written authorization when permitted or required by law for the following purposes:
Treatment: To provide mental health services, coordinate care, consult with other healthcare professionals, or make appropriate referrals.
Payment: To process insurance claims, verify coverage, collect payments, and manage billing.
Healthcare Operations: To support practice administration, clinical supervision, quality improvement, and other permitted operational activities.
Legal and Safety Requirements: We may disclose information when required or permitted by law, including:
Reporting suspected child abuse or other legally mandated concerns.
Responding to serious threats to health or safety.
Complying with valid court orders or other applicable legal processes.
Participating in authorized healthcare oversight activities.
Meeting certain public health, law enforcement, or workers' compensation requirements.
Other disclosures specifically permitted or required by applicable law.
We may also use your contact information to send appointment reminders and communicate about your treatment or available services.
All disclosures are subject to applicable federal and Pennsylvania confidentiality protections.
3. Uses and Disclosures Requiring Authorization
We generally require your written authorization before disclosing PHI for purposes not otherwise permitted by law.
Psychotherapy Notes: Separately maintained psychotherapy notes receive additional protections and generally require specific written authorization before disclosure, except in circumstances permitted by law.
Marketing: We will obtain authorization for uses or disclosures of PHI for marketing when required by law.
Sale of Information: We do not sell your protected health information.
You may revoke an authorization in writing at any time, except to the extent we have already acted in reliance on it.
4. Communication With Family Members and Others
We may share relevant information with individuals involved in your care or payment when you agree, have an opportunity to object and do not object, or when otherwise permitted by law.
Special confidentiality considerations may apply to minors, couples, and families. Your clinician will discuss applicable privacy expectations and limitations as part of the informed consent process.
5. In-Person and Telehealth Privacy
Full Circle Counseling and Wellness provides services at our second-floor office in Havertown, Pennsylvania, and through virtual appointments for eligible clients located in Pennsylvania.
We take reasonable measures to safeguard your information in both settings, including using appropriate administrative, technical, and physical protections.
For telehealth appointments, clients are encouraged to participate from a private, secure location where conversations cannot be overheard. Your therapist will discuss relevant telehealth privacy considerations, including limitations associated with technology and electronic communication.
6. Your Rights Regarding Your Health Information
Under HIPAA, you have the right to:
Access Your Records: Request to inspect or obtain an electronic or paper copy of your health records, subject to applicable exceptions. We generally respond within 30 days and may charge a reasonable, legally permitted fee.
Request Corrections: Ask us to amend information you believe is inaccurate or incomplete. We may deny certain requests but will provide an explanation in writing.
Request Confidential Communications: Ask us to contact you using a particular method or at a specific location. We will accommodate reasonable requests.
Request Restrictions: Ask us to limit certain uses or disclosures of your PHI. Although we are not always required to agree, we will honor restrictions on disclosures to health plans for payment or healthcare operations when required by law for services paid out of pocket in full.
Receive an Accounting of Disclosures: Request a record of certain disclosures of your PHI made during the preceding six years, subject to applicable exceptions.
Obtain This Notice: Request a paper or electronic copy of our Notice of Privacy Practices at any time.
File a Complaint: Submit a privacy complaint without fear of retaliation.
7. Changes to This Notice
Full Circle Counseling and Wellness reserves the right to update this notice as permitted by law. Changes may apply to information already maintained by the practice.
The current version will be available upon request and through our practice website.
8. Questions or Privacy Complaints
If you have questions about this notice, wish to exercise your privacy rights, or believe your information has been handled improperly, please contact:
Full Circle Counseling and Wellness
2000 Old West Chester Pike, 2nd Floor
Havertown, PA 19083
Phone: 814-313-4415
Email: ekoppenhofer@cgrc.org
You may also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights, at www.hhs.gov/ocr.
We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint or exercising your privacy rights.
Updated Confidentiality Provisions
Office: 2000 Old West Chester Pike, 2nd Floor, Havertown, PA 19083
Services: In-person counseling and virtual therapy throughout Pennsylvania
4. Confidentiality and Parental Access for Minors
Full Circle Counseling and Wellness provides mental health services to children and adolescents. We recognize the importance of involving parents and guardians in treatment while also protecting the privacy, dignity, and developing independence of young clients.
Children Under Age 14
For children under age 14, a parent or legal guardian generally provides consent for outpatient mental health treatment and may exercise applicable rights concerning treatment information and records, subject to legal limitations.
Our clinicians encourage appropriate caregiver participation while also maintaining developmentally appropriate privacy to support trust, openness, and effective treatment.
Adolescents Ages 14–17
Under Pennsylvania's Act 65 of 2020, adolescents ages 14–17 may independently consent to voluntary outpatient mental health treatment without parental permission. A parent or legal guardian may also consent to outpatient treatment without the adolescent's agreement, as permitted by law.
Adolescents ages 14–17 generally have significant rights regarding the release of their mental health treatment information. Parental access is not automatic or unlimited simply because a parent provides consent, pays for services, or maintains insurance coverage.
When a parent or guardian consents to treatment, they are entitled to information necessary to provide informed consent, including relevant symptoms, treatment recommendations, risks, benefits, and expected outcomes. Additional disclosures are governed by applicable Pennsylvania and federal confidentiality laws.
Parental Involvement and Confidentiality
Our clinicians strive to balance adolescent privacy with appropriate caregiver involvement. We may share general treatment goals, recommendations, and information necessary to support care when legally permitted, while respecting the young person's confidentiality.
Information may be disclosed without authorization when required or permitted by law, including certain mandated reporting obligations, serious safety concerns, or other applicable exceptions.
When questions arise about parental access, custody arrangements, or requests for records, Full Circle Counseling and Wellness will review applicable law and relevant legal documentation before releasing protected information.
5. Privacy in Couples Counseling
Couples counseling involves more than one participant and requires clear expectations regarding confidentiality, communication, and treatment records.
Shared Treatment Information
Information discussed during joint sessions may become part of the clinical record for couples treatment. Participants should understand that information shared during joint sessions is generally known to both partners and cannot be treated as confidential from the other participating partner.
Individual Conversations and Private Disclosures
At times, a therapist may meet individually with one partner as part of couples treatment. Before beginning services, the therapist will explain how information shared during individual meetings will be handled, including whether a no-secrets policy applies.
Any such policy will be discussed through a separate couples counseling informed consent agreement. A no-secrets policy does not override applicable confidentiality laws or automatically authorize disclosure of protected information.
Records and Requests for Information
Requests to access or release couples counseling records will be evaluated under applicable federal and Pennsylvania laws, including the privacy rights of each participant.
Participation in couples counseling does not automatically authorize one partner to obtain the other partner's separately protected health information.
Safety and Confidentiality
Confidentiality may be limited when disclosure is required or permitted by law, including mandated reporting, serious safety concerns, or legally valid disclosure requirements.
6. Privacy in Family Counseling
Family counseling may involve parents, children, adolescents, siblings, caregivers, or other family members. Because multiple individuals participate in treatment, confidentiality requires special consideration.
Family Participation and Privacy
Our clinicians will explain the structure of family treatment, identify the client or clients receiving services, and discuss expectations for confidentiality and information sharing.
Information shared during joint family sessions is generally known to those present. However, participation in family counseling does not automatically provide every family member with unrestricted access to another participant's protected health information.
Individual Sessions Within Family Treatment
When individual meetings occur as part of family therapy, the clinician will explain how information from those meetings may be used or discussed in subsequent family sessions.
The therapist will work to maintain trust, appropriate boundaries, and transparency while complying with applicable confidentiality laws.
Minors Participating in Family Counseling
When children or adolescents participate in family treatment, their privacy rights remain subject to Pennsylvania law, including the provisions governing adolescent consent and control over mental health records.
Parents and guardians may receive information necessary for consent and treatment participation when legally authorized, but family therapy does not eliminate a minor's applicable confidentiality protections.
Records and Disclosure Requests
Requests for family therapy records will be reviewed individually, considering the identity of the client or clients, applicable authorizations, the rights of participating family members, and relevant legal requirements.
Confidentiality Outside of Sessions
We encourage family members to respect one another's privacy and discuss expectations about sharing information outside of therapy.
While our clinicians are bound by professional confidentiality requirements, we cannot guarantee that other family members will maintain confidentiality regarding information they learn during sessions.
7. Our Commitment to Collaborative and Ethical Care
At Full Circle Counseling and Wellness, we believe confidentiality is essential to building strong therapeutic relationships.
Our clinicians approach individual, couples, and family counseling with cultural humility, transparency, respect, and attention to the unique needs of each participant.
We will explain confidentiality expectations and applicable limitations during the informed consent process and encourage clients and caregivers to ask questions whenever they need clarification.
All privacy and disclosure decisions remain subject to applicable federal and Pennsylvania law.