Legal
Health Information Exchange
How theSleepMD shares your health information electronically with the other providers involved in your care — and the choices you have.
Last updated: October 9, 2026
The short version
- A health information exchange lets the doctors, pharmacies, and labs treating you share your records electronically and securely, instead of by fax or on paper.
- We use these networks to see your medication history, send your prescriptions, and share records with your other clinicians, so your care is safer and better coordinated.
- Your information is shared only as HIPAA and state law allow. It is never sold or used for advertising.
- You can opt out at any time, and opting out will never affect your care.
What a health information exchange is
A health information exchange (HIE) is a secure electronic network that lets healthcare providers, pharmacies, laboratories, and health plans share patient information with one another. Instead of waiting for records to arrive by fax or mail, the clinicians treating you can see important information when they need it.
Exchanges may be run by states, by regions, or as national networks. Some connect electronic health record systems; others connect prescribers and pharmacies.
How theSleepMD takes part
Through our electronic health record and electronic prescribing systems, we may use health information exchanges and networks to:
- Check your medication history and pharmacy fill records before prescribing, to help prevent dangerous interactions and duplicate prescriptions.
- Send your prescriptions electronically to the pharmacy you choose.
- Share visit notes, sleep study results, and treatment plans with your primary care physician, the clinician who referred you, and other clinicians treating you.
- Receive records, test results, and referrals from your other clinicians, hospitals, and laboratories.
- Meet public-health reporting requirements, as the law requires.
The networks we connect to may change over time. If you ask, we'll tell you which ones we currently use.
Who can see it
Through an HIE, your information can be seen only by healthcare providers, pharmacies, health plans, and other organizations the law allows to see it — usually because they are treating you, paying for your care, or running their healthcare operations. Every participant must follow HIPAA and the exchange's own privacy and security rules.
We do not sell your information, and we never use an HIE to share it for marketing or advertising.
Specially protected information
Federal and state laws give extra protection to certain kinds of health information, including substance use disorder treatment records, mental health records, HIV and other sexually transmitted infection test results, genetic test results, and reproductive health information. We share those records only as those laws allow, which may require your separate written permission.
Benefits and risks
Sharing information electronically can:
- Help your clinicians make safer, faster decisions, especially about medications.
- Reduce repeated tests, paperwork, and the need to retell your medical history.
- Make it easier to continue your care when you see a new clinician.
There are also risks. Your record may contain an error that others then see, and although exchanges use strong security, no electronic system is completely secure. You have the right to ask us to correct information you believe is wrong.
Your choices
Agreeing to health information exchange is part of creating an account with us, and you can change your mind at any time. Contact us to opt out, and we'll stop sharing your information through health information exchanges from then on. Opting out will never affect your ability to receive care from us or your eligibility for any program.
Opting out can't recall information that was shared before your request. It also doesn't stop us from sharing information in other ways HIPAA allows — for example, sending a referral letter to your doctor, sending a prescription to your pharmacy, or providing information needed in an emergency or required by law.
Your rights
You keep all of your rights over your medical record, including the right to get a copy, to ask for corrections, and to get a list of certain disclosures. Our Privacy Policy explains how to use them.
Your agreement
By checking the Health Information Exchange box when you create your account or book care, you confirm that you have read this information and agree that theSleepMD may exchange your health information electronically as described here, until you opt out.
Contact us
Questions, or want to opt out? Reach us: