Website privacy policy

Geisinger websites (including Geisinger.org and Marworth.org) (collectively, the “Sites”) provided by Geisinger and its affiliates (collectively referred to as “Geisinger,” “us,” and “we”). We have created this privacy policy (this “Privacy Policy”) to disclose our practices related to personal information that we collect through the Sites. In addition to this Privacy Policy, you should review the Sites’ Terms of Use.

PLEASE NOTE! Geisinger’s Notices of Privacy Practices are separate documents that describe how the “Protected Health Information” about our patients’ and members’ protected under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) as well as other federal and Pennsylvania laws, rules and regulations may be used and disclosed by Geisinger. This Privacy Policy does not govern Protected Health Information.

Types of Personal Information We Collect

When you use our Sites, we collect and store  personal information from or about you, as well as the device you have used to access the Sites, in a variety of ways, including (but not limited to) the following:  

Information you provide to us:  We collect and store personal information that you provide directly to us on or through the Sites.  For example, we collect personal information about you when you pay a bill, sign up for emails, take a survey, make a donation, create an account or register for our Sites, use various features of the Sites, post comments on our Sites, fill out a form, schedule an appointment, conduct a search, call us, request support, chat or otherwise communicate with us.  Depending on the Site, we may collect the following kinds of personal information from you, and we may use this Information to contact you or combine that Information with other information we have about you or your device:

• Contact information, such as your name, email address, and phone number.
• Account information, such as your password, age, date of birth, and any other information you provide;
• Transaction information, such as limited payment information from you, such as payment method and payment card information, and billing and shipping address; and
• Other information you choose to provide, such as information you provide to conduct a search; fill out a form; request an appointment; participate in a survey, assessment, contest, or promotion; sign up for a class; use other interactive areas of the Sites such as chat or other communication features; have live audio and video visits or interactions; or request technical or customer support.
• Information collected through cookies and similar technologies:  We also collect, and may transmit, certain information through cookies and similar technologies (such as pixels, beacons, and APIs) (collectively, “Cookies”), which are enables on the Sites. These technologies may collect information such as Internet Protocol (“IP”) address, device ID, browser type and language, operating system, referring URLs, date and time of your visit, pages viewed, links clicked, movements through the Sites, referring URLs, and other information about your activities or use of the Sites. 

How We Use the Personal Information We Collect

We may collect and use personal information in the following ways, depending on the Site, including to:

• communicate with you
• provide you with information or services, including personalized Information
• make features and functions on the Sites available for your use
• optimize your web experience
• provide or improve customer service
• conduct surveys, research, and analysis, and generate reports
• promote events
• market and advertise to you
• establish and manage your accounts
• operate, evaluate, and improve Geisinger’s services and operations
• monitor and analyze trends, usage, and activities in connection with our Sites
• comply with applicable laws, regulations, and court orders

How Your Personal Information Is Shared

We may share personal information we collect about you in the following ways:  with our service providers, consultants, and vendors to maintain, improve, monitor, provide, protect, and promote our Sites and services; with other entities that are affiliates or subsidiaries of Geisinger; in the course of legal proceedings or in response to legal orders or government requests, and as otherwise required by law; as needed to support compliance, operations, and corporate governance functions; and in connection with a transfer of ownership or assets, a corporate reorganization, merger, or acquisition.

Please note: Information you have shared with others or that others have copied may also remain visible after you have closed your account or deleted the information from your own profile. In addition, you may not be able to access, correct, or eliminate any personal information about you that other Site users copied or exported out of the Sites, because this information may not be in Geisinger’s control. 

Other Online Service Links and Features

You should be aware that when you are on the Sites, you may find links to other websites that Geisinger does not control, and we do not determine the privacy practices of third parties or the content of their websites. You should read the posted privacy policy of any website before you access it.

The Sites may also include a chat feature to help answer your questions. When you interact with the chat feature, the contents of the chat may be captured and kept as a transcript. By using these features, you acknowledge that our vendors may process the information gathered during your interaction to facilitate this service on our behalf. Your engagement with the chat feature is entirely voluntary. 

Cookies and Similar Technologies

Cookies Used on the Sites. We use cookies, pixels, beacons, and other similar technologies (“Cookies”) on different portions of the Sites. We may use Cookies for different purposes, such as for various performance purposes (including to load the website faster and increase the speed of rendering, to improve the performance of the Sites and the user experience), to enable certain features to work on the Sites (such as remembering and pre-populating user preferences, including language choices, location-based features, including to help find a Geisinger physical location, and video media players), for analytics (including for analyzing and measuring how visitors use the Sites and specific functions and features), and for advertising. What kind of Cookies are enabled on the Sites depends on the Site and the web page. 

How to manage Cookies.  You may be able to manage certain Cookies by adjusting your browser or device settings. Browsers and devices are different, so refer to the settings menu of your browser or device control settings for instructions on how to see or change your Cookie preferences. Disabling certain Cookies may result in our Sites, or portions of our Sites, to not function properly or be available to you. We are not responsible for the effectiveness of, or compliance with, external-parties’ opt-out of cookie disable options or programs or the accuracy of their statements regarding their programs.

Intermediary Cookie tools. We may implement data modification and obfuscation tools provided by technology vendors to help us limit how certain information may be collected through Cookies. These tools function as an intermediary between the Sites and Cookies, and allow us to adjust how Cookies interact with the Sites.

Our Site Security

PLEASE NOTE THAT, BY ITS VERY NATURE, A WEBSITE CANNOT BE ABSOLUTELY SECURE OR OTHERWISE PROTECTED AGAINST INTENTIONAL OR MALICIOUS INTRUSION ATTEMPTS. FURTHERMORE, GEISINGER DOES NOT CONTROL THE DEVICES OR COMPUTERS OR THE INTERNET OVER WHICH YOU MAY CHOOSE TO SEND INFORMATION AND CANNOT, THEREFORE, PREVENT SUCH INTERCEPTIONS OR COMPROMISES TO YOUR INFORMATION WHILE IN TRANSIT TO GEISINGER. GEISINGER CANNOT AND DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ABSOLUTE SECURITY OF ELECTRONIC INFORMATION, COMMUNICATIONS, OR TRANSMISSIONS. ANY TRANSMISSION MADE OVER THE INTERNET BY ANY ORGANIZATION OR ANY INDIVIDUAL RUNS THE RISK OF INTERCEPTION.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We reserve the right to change, modify, add, or remove portions of this Privacy Policy at any time in our sole discretion and without prior notice. Updates will be posted here and be effective immediately upon posting. Please check the Site regularly for updates to this Privacy Policy.

CMS Blue Button Program

Notwithstanding the other provisions of this Privacy Policy, if you are participating in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) Blue Button program through Geisinger the following provisions apply to you:

(a) Geisinger will notify you of any material changes to this Privacy Policy,

(b) we will notify you if Geisinger is sold or merged into another entity,

(c) the notice will be provided electronically though the Blue Button portal on Geisinger’s website, and

(d) if you inform Geisinger that you are opting out of the Blue Button program through the Blue Button portal, Geisinger will delete the Blue Button information that we received from CMS about you.

Contact Information

Should you have any questions or want more information regarding Geisinger’s Sites, please send an email to: systemprivacyoffice@geisinger.edu.