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Privacy Policy

Texas Institute of Chest and Sleep Disorders

Effective Date: 10/23/2026     Last Updated: 10/23/2026

1. Who We Are and What This Policy Covers

This Privacy Policy is provided by Texas Institute of Chest and Sleep Disorders (“we,” “us,” or “our”). It explains how we collect, use, share, and protect information when you visit our website at https://lungmedicine.com/, submit a form on our website or on any landing page we operate (including landing pages hosted through our marketing platform, GoHighLevel), respond to our advertisements on Facebook or Instagram (including Facebook lead forms), or communicate with us by phone, email, or text message about a request for care.

This Privacy Policy does not replace our HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices. Once you become our patient, the health information in your medical record is protected by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and applicable Texas law, and is handled as described in our Notice of Privacy Practices (see Section 7).

2. Information We Collect

Information you give us. When you request an appointment or contact us through our website, a landing page, or a Facebook lead form, we may collect:

  • Your first and last name
  • Phone number and email address
  • Your preferred contact method and preferred appointment time
  • Whether you are submitting the request on behalf of a minor as a parent or legal guardian
  • Your consent choices, such as agreeing to receive text messages
  • Any other information you choose to provide when you call, email, or text us

Please do not submit health information online. Our online forms are for scheduling requests only. Please do not include symptoms, diagnoses, medications, medical history, insurance member numbers, or payment card information in an online form, a Facebook lead form, or a text message. Our office team will collect the information needed for your visit by phone or through our secure intake process.

Information collected automatically. When you visit our website or landing pages, we and our service providers automatically collect certain technical information, such as your IP address, browser and device type, operating system, the pages you view, the date and time of your visit, the website that referred you, and general location derived from your IP address. See Section 3.

Information from Facebook and Instagram. If you submit a Facebook or Instagram lead form, Meta Platforms, Inc. (“Meta”) collects the information you enter and delivers it to us. Meta may pre-fill some fields from your Meta account. Meta also handles that information under its own privacy policy.

3. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Our website and landing pages use cookies, pixels, tags, and similar technologies. These include:

  • Google Analytics (Google LLC), to understand how visitors use our website, such as which pages are viewed and how visitors arrive at our site
  • Meta Pixel (Meta Platforms, Inc.), to measure the results of our Facebook and Instagram advertising, such as how many people visited our website or submitted a request after seeing an ad
  • Tracking tools provided by our marketing platform (GoHighLevel) and our marketing agency (BrandUs Marketing LLC), to attribute website visits and form submissions to the advertising campaign or source that produced them
  • Website performance and search optimization tools, to keep our website functioning and improve how it appears in search results

How we limit tracking. We configure these tools to measure page visits and to count that a form was submitted. They are not configured to receive the information you type into our forms, and we do not use them to send your name, contact details, or health information to advertising platforms. We do not place advertising or analytics tracking technologies inside our patient portal.

Your choices. You can block or delete cookies through your browser settings, and you can use our website cookie preferences tool where available. You can opt out of Google Analytics using the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on (https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout), and you can manage ad preferences in your Facebook or Instagram account settings. Blocking cookies may affect how parts of our website work. Our website does not currently respond to browser “Do Not Track” signals.

4. How We Use Information

We use the information we collect to:

  • Respond to your inquiry and contact you about your appointment request
  • Schedule, confirm, and remind you of appointments
  • Verify whether a request was submitted by a parent or legal guardian for a minor
  • Measure and improve the performance of our website and our advertising
  • Operate, secure, and maintain our website, landing pages, and systems
  • Comply with legal obligations and protect our rights, patients, and staff

Submitting a form is a request to be contacted. It does not create a patient relationship and does not confirm an appointment. We do not use the information you submit through our forms to create advertising audiences, and we do not currently send marketing newsletters or promotional text campaigns.

5. How We Share Information

We do not sell or rent the personal information you submit to us. We share information only as described below:

  • Our office team, to respond to and schedule your request
  • Service providers that help us operate, under contracts that limit their use of your information to providing services to us. These include GoHighLevel (customer relationship management, landing pages, and appointment communications), BrandUs Marketing LLC (our marketing agency), and our website hosting and website platform providers
  • Google and Meta, which receive the technical and measurement information described in Section 3 and use it under their own privacy policies
  • Legal and safety purposes, when required by law, subpoena, or court order, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of our patients, staff, or others
  • Business transfers, in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of all or part of our practice, subject to applicable law

6. Text Messages (SMS)

If you provide a mobile number and agree to receive text messages, Texas Institute of Chest and Sleep Disorders may text you about your appointment request, scheduling, reminders, and follow-up. Message frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply. Reply STOP to opt out at any time, or reply HELP for help. Consent to receive text messages is not a condition of receiving care.

No mobile information will be shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes. Text messaging originator opt-in data and consent will not be shared with any third parties. Information may be shared with service providers that help us deliver text messages, such as our messaging platform and telecommunications carriers.

7. Health Information and HIPAA

Texas Institute of Chest and Sleep Disorders is a healthcare provider covered by HIPAA. Information that identifies you and relates to your health, your care, or payment for your care is protected health information. We handle protected health information as required by HIPAA and applicable Texas law, and we require service providers that handle protected health information for us to sign business associate agreements.

Our Notice of Privacy Practices explains how we may use and disclose your medical information and your rights regarding that information, including your rights to access, amend, and receive an accounting of disclosures of your records. You may request a copy of our Notice of Privacy Practices at any time by contacting our office using the information in Section 14.

8. Children and Minors

We provide care to patients of all ages, but our website, landing pages, and online forms are intended for adults. If the patient is under 18, the online request must be submitted by the patient’s parent or legal guardian. Our forms ask you to confirm that you are 18 or older, or that you are a parent or legal guardian submitting on behalf of a minor. Our online advertising is directed to adults 18 and older.

We do not knowingly collect personal information online directly from children under 13. If we learn that a minor submitted an online form without a parent or legal guardian, we will contact a parent or guardian where appropriate and delete the online submission unless we are required to keep it. If you believe a child has submitted information to us, please contact us using the information in Section 14.

9. How Long We Keep Information

We keep inquiry and appointment-request information only as long as reasonably needed to respond to your request, schedule care, maintain business records, resolve disputes, and meet legal obligations, and then we delete or de-identify it. If you become a patient, information that becomes part of your medical record is kept for the period required by Texas and federal law.

10. How We Protect Information

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect the information we collect, including limiting access to staff and service providers who need it. No website, internet transmission, or storage system is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security. Please do not send sensitive health or financial information through online forms, social media, email, or text message.

11. Your Choices and Requests

  • You may call our office instead of submitting an online form.
  • You may opt out of text messages at any time by replying STOP.
  • You may ask us to access, correct, or delete the information you submitted through our website, landing pages, or Facebook lead forms by contacting us using the information in Section 14. We will verify your identity before acting on a request. Some information may need to be kept to meet legal or medical record-keeping requirements.
  • Patients may exercise their rights regarding medical records as described in our Notice of Privacy Practices.

12. Third-Party Websites and Our Patient Portal

Our website links to our patient portal, which is provided by a third-party electronic health record vendor and requires you to log in. Information you provide in the patient portal is protected health information governed by HIPAA and our Notice of Privacy Practices, and is also subject to the portal vendor’s terms. Our website may also link to other websites, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Google. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party websites, and we encourage you to review their privacy policies.

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will post the updated version on this page and change the “Effective Date” above. If we make material changes to how we use or share information you have submitted, we will provide additional notice as required by law.

14. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, or you want to make a privacy request, please contact:

Privacy Officer

Texas Institute of Chest and Sleep Disorders

14262 Gulf Freeway

Houston, TX 77034

Phone: (281) 481-0091