DataNerd Privacy Policy

Effective Date: September 1, 2026

  1. Introduction. Health Care Cost Institute (“Company”, “we”, or “us”) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting it through this Privacy Policy. This Privacy Policy governs your access to and use of hccidatanerd.org, including any content, functionality, products and services offered on or through hccidatanerd.org (the “Website”). Data Nerd is a service of the Health Care Cost Institute.

    When accessing the Website, HCCI will learn certain information about you, both automatically and through voluntary actions you may take, during your visit. This policy applies to information we collect on the Website and in email, text, or other electronic messages between you and the Website.

    Please read the Privacy Policy carefully before you start to use the Website. By using the Website, you accept and agree to be bound and abide by the Privacy Policy. In addition, when you request to download any resource or product (whether free or paid) or complete a purchase, you may be required to affirmatively accept the Terms of Service and this Privacy Policy by clicking “I Agree” (or a similar affirmation). If you do not want to agree to the Privacy Policy, you must not access or use the Website.

  2. Age Requirement. This Website is offered and available to users who are 18 years of age or older. By using this Website, you represent and warrant that you are of legal age to form a binding contract with HCCI. If you do not meet all of these requirements, you must not access or use the Website.

    HCCI does not knowingly collect Personal Information from anyone under 18 years of age. If we learn that we have collected Personal Information from a person under 18, we will delete that information. If you believe that a person under 18 may have provided us with Personal Information, please contact us at datanerd@healthcostinstitute.org.

  3. The following terms have the meanings stated below:

    “Personal Information” means information that identifies, describes, or could reasonably be linked to you or your household, such as your name, email address, IP address, account information, purchase history, and similar identifiers.

    “Non-Personal Information” means information that does not identify you personally, including aggregated or de-identified data, browser type, device type, and general usage statistics that cannot reasonably be linked to you.

  4. Information We Collect. We collect several categories of information. First, we collect the Personal Information you voluntarily provide to us, such as your name, email address, and the content of any message you send us through our contact form. Second, if you register for an account or purchase a product, we collect your account registration information, your purchase and transaction history, and your related support communications. Third, as described below, we automatically collect certain technical information about your use of the Website.
  5. Automatic Data Collection. We may collect information relating to your use of the Website, such as the searches you undertake, the pages you view, your browser type, IP address, requested URL, referring URL, and timestamp information. We use this type of information to administer the Website and provide the highest possible level of service to you. We also use this information in the aggregate to perform statistical analyses of user behavior and characteristics in order to measure interest in and use of the various areas of the Website.
  6. Payment and Transaction Information. When you make a purchase from the Website, our third-party payment processor, Stripe, collects and processes your payment card and billing information to complete your transaction. We do not collect or store your full payment card number; we receive only limited transaction information (such as confirmation of payment and the last digits of your card) from the payment processor. Your payment information is handled in accordance with the payment processor’s own terms and privacy policy.
  7. Data Retention. We retain each category of Personal Information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law.
  8. Cookies and Tracking Technologies. We may send cookies to your computer to uniquely identify your browser and improve the quality of our service. The term “cookies” refers to small pieces of information that a website sends to your computer’s hard drive while you are viewing the Website. We may use both session cookies (which expire once you close your browser) and persistent cookies (which stay on your computer until you delete them). You can accept or decline cookies in your web browser settings. If you choose to disable cookies, some areas of the Website may not work properly or at all.
  9. Do Not Track Signals. Some web browsers may transmit “Do Not Track” signals to websites. Because there is no common standard for how Do Not Track signals are interpreted or honored, the Website does not currently respond to Do Not Track signals. We will continue to monitor developments in Do Not Track technology and may update this policy if a standard is adopted.
  10. How Your Information Is Used. Except as otherwise stated in this Privacy Policy, we do not sell, trade, or otherwise share your Personal Information with third parties without your consent, except for disclosure to trusted third parties who assist us in operating our Website, conducting our business, or providing services to you, so long as those parties agree to keep this information confidential. These third parties use your Personal Information only at our direction and in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

    In general, the Personal Information you provide may be used in one of the following ways:

    • To personalize your experience (your information helps us to better respond to your individual needs)
    • To improve our website (we continually strive to improve our website based on the information and feedback we receive from you)
    • To improve customer service (your information helps us to more effectively respond to your customer service requests and support needs)
    • To send periodic emails (The email address you provide may be used to send you information, respond to inquiries, and/or other requests or questions)
    • We also may release your information when we believe release is appropriate to comply with the law, enforce our site policies, or protect ours or others’ rights, property, or safety.

    Non-Personal Information: In general, we use Non-Personal Information to help us improve the Website and customize the user experience, and we may aggregate Non-Personal Information to track trends and analyze use patterns on the Website. We do not sell your Personal Information, and we do not disclose Non-Personal Information to advertisers or ad networks for cross-context behavioral advertising.

  11. Security. We maintain reasonable administrative, technical, and physical security measures designed to protect your Personal Information from unauthorized access, misuse, or disclosure. However, no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. While we make every effort to protect the Personal Information you share with us through our Website, we cannot ensure that it will not be accessed, disclosed, or tampered with by a third party in circumstances beyond our reasonable control. In the event of a data breach affecting your Personal Information, we will notify you as and to the extent required by applicable law.
  12. Applicable Law and Scope. The Website is intended for users located in the United States, and this Privacy Policy and the information it covers are governed by U.S. law. This Privacy Policy governs the Personal Information of website users only. The de-identified health care claims data that HCCI licenses through the Website is not governed by this Privacy Policy; that data is governed by HCCI’s Terms of Service. HCCI is a non-profit organization and, as such, is generally exempt from the comprehensive state consumer privacy laws, including the California Consumer Privacy Act/California Privacy Rights Act and the comprehensive privacy laws of Virginia, Colorado, and Connecticut. HCCI nonetheless offers the rights described below as a matter of good practice.
  13. Your Rights Regarding the Use of Your Personal Information. You have the right at any time to stop us from contacting you for marketing purposes. When we send marketing communications to a user, the user can opt out of future communications by following the unsubscribe instructions in the email.

    You have the right to know what Personal Information we hold about you and to ensure it is correct and up to date.

    You have the right to request that we delete the Personal Information we hold about you, subject to the exceptions permitted by applicable law.

    You have the right to request access to or a copy of the Personal Information we hold about you.

    If you have a registered account, you may close your account at any time by contacting us at datanerd@healthcostinstitute.org. Upon account closure, we will delete or de-identify your Personal Information in accordance with our data retention practices, unless retention is required by law.

    You can exercise these rights at any time by sending an email to datanerd@healthcostinstitute.org. For your protection, we may need to verify your identity before responding to your request. We will respond within 45 days of receiving a verifiable request, and we may extend that period by an additional 45 days where reasonably necessary, in which case we will notify you. If we decline your request, you may appeal that decision by replying to our response, and we will inform you of the outcome of your appeal.

  14. Use from Outside the United States. The Website is operated in the United States. If you access the Website from outside the United States, please be aware that your Personal Information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States, where data protection laws may differ from those in your country of residence. By using the Website, you consent to the transfer of your Personal Information to the United States.
  15. Third-Party Links. The Website may contain links to third-party websites, applications, or services that are not operated by us. If you click on a third-party link, you will be directed to that third party’s site. We strongly advise you to review the privacy policy of every site you visit. We have no control over and assume no responsibility for the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third-party sites or services.
  16. Changes to This Policy. HCCI may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. For material changes, we will provide notice by posting the updated Policy on this page with a new effective date and, where appropriate, by other reasonable means. Changes apply prospectively from their effective date. We encourage you to review this Policy periodically to stay informed of any modifications.