Privacy, accessibility and terms.

Notice of Privacy Practices · Effective 1 January 2026

Privacy & HIPAA

This notice describes how medical information about you may be used and disclosed, and how you can get access to that information. Meridian Dental Studio, PLLC is required by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act to maintain the privacy of your protected health information and to provide you with this notice.

How we use your information

Without asking for your separate written permission, we may use and disclose your information for:

• Treatment. Sharing records with a specialist we refer you to, a laboratory fabricating your restoration, or another dentist taking over your care.
• Payment. Submitting claims, pre-authorisations and itemised statements to your dental plan or a financing provider you have chosen.
• Health-care operations. Internal quality review, staff training, appointment reminders, and recall notices.

We will obtain your written authorisation before using your information for marketing, before selling it in any circumstance — which we do not do — and before publishing your photographs in our smile gallery or anywhere else.

When we may be required to disclose

State and federal law require disclosure in limited circumstances: reporting suspected abuse or neglect, responding to a court order or subpoena, public-health reporting, workers' compensation claims, and requests from health-oversight agencies. We disclose the minimum necessary in each case.

How we protect it

• Records are held in an encrypted, access-controlled practice management system.
• Every staff member signs a confidentiality agreement and completes annual HIPAA training.
• Vendors handling your data — our software provider, laboratory and billing clearinghouse — operate under signed business associate agreements.
• Access is logged, and staff may only open records for patients they are treating.

Email and web forms are not fully secure channels. Please do not send detailed health information through the contact form on this website; use the encrypted patient portal or call us.

Your health-information rights

Under HIPAA you have the right to:

• Inspect and copy your dental records, including X-rays. We provide them within 30 days, in electronic form if you prefer, for a reasonable cost-based fee.
• Request an amendment if you believe something in your record is incorrect or incomplete. If we deny the request we will explain why in writing and you may file a statement of disagreement.
• Receive an accounting of disclosures we have made outside treatment, payment and operations in the previous six years.
• Request restrictions on how we use or disclose your information. We are not required to agree, except that we must honour a request to withhold information from your insurer for care you paid for in full yourself.
• Request confidential communications — for example, that we only call a particular number, or never leave a voicemail.
• Be notified if a breach of your unsecured health information occurs.
• Receive a paper copy of this notice at any time, even if you agreed to receive it electronically.

To exercise any of these, write to the Privacy Officer, Meridian Dental Studio, 7120 E Marshall Way Suite 4, Scottsdale AZ 85251, or email privacy@meridiandental.com. You may also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights. We will never retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

Accessibility statement

We want this website and this building to work for everybody. We aim to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 at Level AA, and we treat that as an ongoing commitment rather than a box that was ticked once.

On this website

• All functionality is operable by keyboard, with a visible focus indicator throughout.
• Text meets AA contrast ratios in both the light and dark colour schemes.
• Images carry descriptive alternative text; decorative graphics are hidden from screen readers.
• Motion and animation are removed automatically when your device requests reduced motion.
• Page structure uses real headings, landmarks and labelled form controls.
• Text can be resized to 200% without loss of content or function.

In the practice

• Step-free access from the covered car park through to reception and Suite 4.
• A wheelchair-accessible operatory and two accessible parking bays beside the lift.
• A hearing loop at the front desk.
• Service animals are welcome anywhere in the building.
• Spanish is spoken in-house; interpreters in other languages, including ASL, are arranged at no cost to you with a few days' notice.
• Documents in large print on request.

If you encounter a barrier — on this site or in the building — tell us and we will fix it. Call (480) 555-0142 or email access@meridiandental.com. We respond to accessibility reports within two business days.

Terms of use

This website is not dental advice

Everything here is general information about dentistry and about this practice. It is not a diagnosis, it is not a treatment plan, and it is not a substitute for being examined. No dentist-patient relationship is created by reading this site, filling in the booking form, or emailing us. Never delay seeking care because of something you read here.

Results shown

Photographs in the smile gallery are of patients treated at this practice, published with written consent, and are not retouched. They illustrate what has been achieved for specific individuals. Your own result depends on your starting condition, bone and gum health, bite, habits and healing. No outcome is guaranteed. Fees quoted on this website are our standard fees as of January 2026 and may change; only a written treatment plan issued to you is binding.

Licensure

Dr. Elena Marchetti (DDS) and Dr. Raymond Okafor (DMD) are licensed general dentists in the State of Arizona. Neither is a licensed specialist in orthodontics, periodontics, endodontics or oral and maxillofacial surgery. Arizona permits general dentists to perform these procedures where they are appropriately trained. Credentials referenced on this site — AACD accreditation and AAID fellowship — are awarded by professional organisations and are not specialty designations recognised by the American Dental Association.

Links and content

We link to third-party sites such as financing providers and mapping services. We do not control them and are not responsible for their content or privacy practices. Text, photographs and design on this site belong to Meridian Dental Studio, PLLC and may not be reproduced without permission.

Financial policy

• Your estimated portion is due on the day of treatment. We accept cash, all major cards, FSA and HSA cards, CareCredit and Cherry.
• We verify your benefits before your appointment and give you a written estimate. If your plan pays more than estimated, we refund the difference automatically. If it pays less, we absorb the first $50.
• Estimates are exactly that. Your plan's actual determination governs, and coverage is between you and your carrier.
• Balances unpaid after 90 days may be referred to a collection agency. We will call you first — nobody's account goes to collections without a conversation.
• Appointments cancelled with less than 24 hours' notice, or missed entirely, may incur a $75 fee for hygiene visits and $150 for doctor or surgical time. We waive it for genuine emergencies, and we waive the first one as a matter of course.
• Membership plan fees are non-refundable but the plan may be cancelled at any time, stopping all future charges.

Last reviewed 1 January 2026