Patient information is handled under HIPAA, not this policy
When we bill, credential or audit for a practice, we handle protected health information on that practice's behalf as a HIPAA business associate. That information is governed by the Business Associate Agreement we sign with the practice and by HIPAA, not by this policy. If you are a patient of a practice we work with and have a question about your health information, contact your practice first. Our HIPAA Compliance page explains how we protect that information.
This policy covers everything else: the information of visitors, prospects, clients and their staff.
Information we collect
Information you give us
| When | What |
|---|---|
| Contact form | Name, email, phone (optional), what you need, your message |
| Free billing audit | Name, email, phone, practice name, specialty, software, number of providers, approximate monthly collections, your current billing arrangement, and the aging or ERA reports you attach |
| Credentialing intake | Provider name, NPI, practice details, specialty, the payers you want, practice address and tax ID, CAQH login or credentials you choose to share, license and certification details, and documents you upload. Some payer applications require a provider's date of birth and Social Security number. |
| Practice marketing intake | Practice name, address, phone, website and domain details, Google Business Profile access you choose to grant, and plan choice |
| Checkout | Billing name and address. Card and bank details go directly to our payment processor, our payment processor. We see the last four digits and the transaction result, never the full card number. |
| Phone, email and meetings | Whatever you tell us, plus notes we keep about your practice and your request |
Information collected automatically
When you use the site we collect the pages you view, the links you click, how you arrived (for example from Google or from a link an agent sent you), your approximate location from your IP address, your browser and device type, and the date and time of your visit. This is collected by our analytics tool and by our hosting provider's logs. Details of the cookies involved are in our Cookie Policy.
Information from other sources
- Public registries such as the NPPES NPI Registry, state license boards and CAQH, used to confirm provider details before and during credentialing.
- Payers, when they respond to an application we filed for you.
- Review platforms, when a review mentions your practice.
- Business contact data from public sources, such as a practice website or directory listing, when our team reaches out to practices that may need billing or credentialing. If you are contacted this way and would rather not be, reply and say so, and we stop.
How we use it
| Purpose | Examples |
|---|---|
| Replying to you | Answering a contact form, preparing a billing audit, preparing a credentialing quote |
| Setting up and delivering services | Filing payer applications, working inside your billing software, building your website, invoicing you |
| Running the business | Record keeping, accounting, insurance, responding to legal requests |
| Improving the site | Seeing which pages are read and where forms are abandoned, in aggregate |
| Keeping you informed | Emails about your request or account. Marketing emails only if you asked for them or became a client, and always with an unsubscribe link |
| Security | Spotting fraud, abuse or attempts to access forms without authority |
We do not use your information to make automated decisions that have a legal or similarly significant effect on you.
Analytics and advertising
We use Google Analytics 4 to understand how the site is used. IP addresses are not stored by Google Analytics 4. If we run paid search, Google Ads conversion tracking records that a form was sent after an ad click. Analytics and advertising cookies are set only after you accept them in the cookie banner. You can change your choice at any time from the "Cookie settings" link in the footer. See the Cookie Policy for the full list.
How long we keep it
| Information | Retention |
|---|---|
| Contact form messages | 2 years from the last contact |
| Free billing audit reports you upload | Deleted 30 days after the audit is delivered, unless you become a client |
| Audit request details and the written audit | 2 years, so we can refer back if you return |
| Credentialing files for clients | For the length of the agreement, then 7 years, because payers can audit enrollments after the fact |
| Billing and accounting records | 7 years, as tax law requires |
| Marketing contact details | Until you unsubscribe or ask us to delete them |
| Analytics data | 14 months in Google Analytics, as set in the Cookie Policy |
When a period ends we delete the information or make it anonymous. Where we have to keep something longer because of a legal hold or a payer audit, we keep only that and tell you if you ask.
How we protect it
- Information you send through our forms travels over an encrypted connection and is stored encrypted at rest.
- Access is limited to the people who need it for their role, with individual logins and multi-factor authentication.
- Staff complete privacy and HIPAA training before they are given access, and again every year.
- Payment details are handled by our payment processor and never stored on our systems.
- If a breach affects your information, we tell you without unreasonable delay and in any case within the time the law requires.
No system is perfectly secure. If you think someone has misused your information, contact us at once.
Your choices and rights
You can do any of the following at any time by emailing info@northgatebilling.com or calling (972) 430-6872:
- Access a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
- Correct anything that is wrong.
- Delete your information, unless we need to keep it for an active agreement, a legal duty or a payer record.
- Opt out of marketing emails. Every marketing email also has an unsubscribe link.
- Withdraw consent to analytics or advertising cookies through "Cookie settings".
- Ask who we have shared it with, and receive a list of the categories of recipients.
We honor these requests for everyone, wherever you live. Residents of Texas, California and other states with privacy laws have specific rights under those laws, including the right not to be discriminated against for exercising them and the right to appeal a decision. To appeal, reply to our response and say you want to appeal; a different person reviews it and replies within 60 days.
We will confirm who you are before acting on a request, usually by replying to the email address we hold for you. We respond within 45 days. If we need longer, we tell you why.
Global Privacy Control. If your browser sends a Global Privacy Control signal, we treat it as a request to opt out of analytics and advertising cookies on this site.
Children
This site is for healthcare practices and their staff. It is not directed at anyone under 18 and we do not knowingly collect information from children. If you believe a child has sent us information, tell us and we will delete it.
Where information is processed
Our office is in Texas and our systems are hosted in the United States. Some of our service providers may process information in other countries under contracts that require them to protect it to the standard in this policy.
Links to other sites
The site links to review platforms, payer sites and software vendors. Their privacy practices are their own. Read their policies before giving them information.
Changes to this policy
We update this policy when our practices change. The effective date at the top changes with it. For material changes we add a note at the top of this page for 30 days and, for clients, send an email.
Contact us
Northgate Billing, Skyscrapers Now LLC 811 S Central Expy, Ste 205 Richardson, TX 75080 (972) 430-6872 info@northgatebilling.com