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Privacy Policy

Website Privacy Policy

Overview

This Privacy Policy covers those individuals and businesses that utilize Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (“Blue KC”), “we”, “us” or “our” websites at Bluekc.com, spiracare.com, medicarebluekc.com, bluekcforyou.com, and their subpages and content, (collectively, the “Site”). We are committed to protecting the privacy of your information.  We believe it is a good business practice to disclose to you how your personal information  may be used.  As a user of this Site, or purchaser of the services or products available through the Site (collectively, “Service(s)”) provided by Blue KC, this Privacy Policy set forth herein (this “Privacy Policy”) is intended to describe in a straight-forward and easily understandable manner:

  • the information we collect about you;
  • how that information may be used;
  • with whom the information may be shared;
  • how you may update the information you provide us;
  • how you may contact us; and
  • your choices about our uses and disclosures of your information.

As noted in the Terms of Service applicable to the Site (the “TOS”), by using the Site and/or Services you accept and acknowledge that you are bound by this Privacy Policy.  Accordingly, we encourage you to read this Privacy Policy carefully.  If you have questions or concerns regarding this Privacy Policy, please feel welcome to contact us through the Site at: Bluekc.com Alternatively, you can also e-mail us at Privacy@bluekc.com or send mail to Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, Attn: Privacy Office, P.O. Box 417012, Kansas City, MO 64141

Information We Collect

We collect information about you so we can continue to provide and improve our Services to you and other users of the Site. The information collected through the Site may include items such as your name, e-mail address, IP address, use of first-party and third-party cookies and other information you send to us through the Site. For more information regarding the protected health information that we collect about you and how we may use or disclose that information, please see our Notice of Privacy Practices. The information collected on the Site may be stored at servers, computers, or other media located in or outside the United States.

Automatically Collected Information; Interest-Based Advertising

When you interact with the Sites, advertisements or other content provided by Blue KC or third parties, on behalf of Blue KC, or are receiving our Services through your computer, phone, or mobile device (Devices), we, and third parties, automatically collect certain information (“Automatically-Collected Data”) about or from your Device, such as, without limitation, your browser information on our server logs including your IP address, browser type, browser versions, browser language, browser plug-in type and version, country and time zone, URLs that refer visitors to our Sites, dates and times of visits to our Sites, page views and site navigation, geographic location, cookie information (see below), web beacons, pixel tags, device fingerprinting or other means, the page you requested, duration of activity on our Sites, searches, shopping behavior and preferences, hardware model, operating system version, unique device identifiers, mobile network information, and purchases.

Third-Party Sources

We may obtain personal and non-personal information about you from third-party sources.  This information may be utilized, analyzed, and/or compared with information that we have collected from you or that you have submitted to the Site or in the use of the Service.  Such third parties may include but are not limited to Microsoft, Google, etc.  If Blue KC obtains information from third-party sources, Blue KC takes commercially reasonable measures to ensure the third parties lawfully obtained and provided the information to us.  If the third parties unlawfully obtained and/or provided the information to us despite our reasonable measures to ensure the third parties complied with all legal requirements in obtaining and providing the information to us, you understand, agree, and acknowledge that your sole legal remedy is against the third party that engaged in the unlawful activity and that you will not assert any cause of action, claim or demand against us.

Information Collection Technology (Web Beacons and Cookies)

We may use various technologies to collect information from your electronic device about your activities on the Site or your use of the Service.  We may collect and store non-personally identifying information through cookies, log files, clear gifs (commonly known as “web beacons”), and third parties to profile user activity and preferences.  Technical and specification information about your browser and computer is automatically collected when you use or visit the Site or use the Service.  This information may include but not be limited to your Internet Protocol (“IP”) address, your browser type, operating system, geographic location, access time(s), the content of previously accepted “cookies” from us, and the website address that referred you to the Site.

A cookie is data stored on your computer that tracks non-personal information about you. When you use the Site, we may assign your computer one or more cookies that enable us to improve the quality of the Services and to personalize your experience.  Cookies allow us to automatically collect information about your activity on the Site, such as the content you access while on the Site, the links you click, and other activity you conduct while using the Site.  You may choose to modify your web browser’s setting to disable cookies or limit their use.  If you choose to disable or limit cookies, you are still able to access the Site, but you may be unable to use all of the features on the Site.  Additional information about cookies may be found at: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/260971/description-of-cookies. Many browsers are set to accept cookies until you change your settings. Further information about cookies, including how to see what cookies have been set on your computer or mobile device and how to manage and delete them, visit www.allaboutcookies.org.

The Site may contain web beacons (also known as “clear gifs”) or similar technologies that gather non-personally identifiable information about your use of the Site.  Such technology may also be contained in e-mail messages or newsletters from us that allow us to determine whether messages have been accessed.  The purpose of our use of this technology is so that we may analyze the effectiveness of our marketing efforts, the quality of the Site, and the Services we provide.

Cookies We Use

Type of CookiePurpose
Essential CookiesThese cookies are essential to provide you with services available through our website and to enable you to use some of its features. Without these cookies, the services that you have asked for cannot be provided, and we only use these cookies to provide you with those services.
Functionality CookiesThese cookies allow our website to remember choices you make when you use the Service, such as remembering your language preferences, remembering your login details and remembering the changes you make on other parts of our Site, which you can customize. The purpose of these cookies is to provide you with a more personal experience and to avoid you having to re-enter your preferences every time you visit the Site.
Analytics and Performance CookiesThese cookies track your browsing habits to enable us to show advertising that is more likely to be of interest to you. These cookies use information about your browsing history to group with the other users who have similar interests. Based on that information, third party advertisers can place cookies to enable them to show advertisements that we think will be relevant to your interests while you are on third party websites. Our sites may use Google Ads Pixels. Learn more about how Google products use cookies here. Our Sites may use Microsoft Advertising for advertising on non-Google owned browsers. Learn about Microsoft Advertising’s privacy policy here.  
Targeted and Advertising CookiesThese cookies are used when you visit any public Blue KC social networking website including but not limited to Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), or Linkedin which can record that you have visited this page and could use this information to serve you relevant ads that are in compliance with platform advertising policies. We may use Meta Pixel tracking. Learn what is tracked through Meta here.
Social Media CookiesThese cookies are used when you visit any public Blue KC social networking website including but not limited to Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), or Linkedin which can record that you have visited this page and could use this information to serve you relevant ads that are in compliance with platform advertising policies. We may use Meta Pixel tracking. Learn what is tracked through Meta here.

Personal Information About Users Under 18 Years of Age Not Collected

The Site is meant for adults and those who have reached the age of majority as defined by the laws of their domicile.  The Site is not meant for individuals under the age of eighteen (18) or those defined by the laws of their domicile as minors.  Nonetheless, this Privacy Policy is still designed to comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (“COPPA”) to the extent COPPA and/or the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”) apply.  Accordingly, we do not knowingly collect or retain any personal information about users under the age of sixteen (16).  If we obtain actual knowledge that we collected or retained personal information about a child under the age of sixteen (16), that information will be promptly deleted from our database, servers, and all other media.  Since we do not collect information from users under sixteen (16) years old, no such information is disclosed to third parties.

If parents or guardians wish to create an account for, and provide information related to, their child who is under the age of eighteen (18), the parent or guardian may do so, but assumes full responsibility for ensuring that the information is kept secure and that the information submitted is accurate.  In creating such an account, the parent or guardian accepts that this Privacy Policy will apply to the minor child’s information.

Information Others May Collect

To enhance security and promote operational efficiency, the Site utilizes the resources of reputable hosting facilities that are controlled by third parties.  Blue KC is unable to provide any guarantees or warranties about these third parties’ retention or usage of your information.

Information Use & Sharing

We may use and share your information for any legally permissible purpose.  We may match, use, and share any of the information we collect from you to any personally identifiable information we obtain through third parties.  Examples of some ways we may use or share information that we collect about you include:

  • present the Site and its contents to you;
  • improve your user experience with Blue KC and expedite access to your account;
  • notify you of any Blue KC promotions, deals and other information that may be of use to you or any deals or promotions from our partners;
  • create or administer your account and communicate with you about account creation, activity or modification, placed orders and shipping updates;
  • notify you about any changes to this Privacy Policy or the TOS;
  • respond to your requests and questions;
  • fulfill any other purpose for which you provide it or in any other way we describe when you provide it;
  • fulfill any purpose with your consent;
  • operate, assess, analyze, enhance, and improve our businesses, research, data, marketing and advertising strategies, and our product offerings;
  • enforce our rights and carry out our obligations which includes performing accounting, auditing, and billing activities;
  • protect against fraud;
  • comply with applicable laws, regulations and industry standards and enforce our rights and our TOS and other policies.
  • providing you with products or services;
  • providing you with customized content and services;
  • providing customer support;
  • communicating with you by e-mail, United States mail, telephone, text message, and/or mobile devices about products or services that may be of interest to you either from us, or from any of our affiliates, sponsors or other third parties;
  • working with our advertising partners; and
  • performing functions as otherwise described to you at the time of payment collection.

In order to perform certain services on your behalf, we may publish certain information that you provide.  You agree that any testimonial feedback or other comments provided by you to Blue KC becomes the sole and exclusive property of Blue KC and that such information may be used by Blue KC for any legally permissible purpose, including but not limited to marketing and advertising its services and products.

We may also aggregate and anonymize this information with similar information from our other customers in order to understand how our customers use our Sites or our Services, and/or third-party service providers may collect non-personally identifiable information from our Sites.

You acknowledge and agree that Blue KC may use and disclose your personal and non-personal information to public or private third parties: (i) to comply with requests for inspection by law enforcement officials (including potential criminal activity); (ii) to respond to cease and desist letters, arbitration proceedings, legal actions and suits, criminal and civil subpoenas, or any court orders; (iii) to enforce or apply the terms of this Privacy Policy or any other agreement between us, including, the TOS; and (iv) to protect our rights, property, or safety, as well as the rights, property, or safety of our users, or others, whether during or after the term of your use of the Site or any Services.

Health and Financial Information

For more information regarding how we may use or disclose your protected health information or personally identifiable information, please see our Notice of Privacy Practices.

Your Information Will Not Be Sold

We will not sell any information you submit to us to any third party without prior written notice to you and an opportunity for you to opt-out of such sale, provided, however, that we are permitted to sell your information in the event of a merger, acquisition, change of control, or sale of substantially all of our assets or our business (or any substantially similar transaction).  However, you agree that we are able to sell aggregated and/or deidentified information that we may collect related to you and your use of the Site or Services.

Communications from Us

Unless you opt out of certain communication features, we may use your information to communicate with you, such as through e-mail, newsletters, and telephone. You may opt out and/or unsubscribe to communications from Blue KC at any time. See the Opt-Out Provisions and Updating Your Information section below for applicable contact information and directions.

Legal Process and Investigation Issues

From time to time, Blue KC may be required to respond to a subpoena, a court order or similar investigative demand from law enforcement, a government agency, or a private litigant.  Blue KC reserves all rights to defend, within its sole discretion, against such legal requests, demands, and claims.  For instance, Blue KC may raise or waive legal objections or rights.  Blue KC also reserves the right to disclose your information, as allowed by applicable law, when we believe it is reasonably appropriate based on the situation.  Such disclosure may occur, but is not limited to, disclosing your information in connection with efforts to: (i) investigate, prevent, or commence other actions regarding suspected illegal activity or other wrongdoing; (ii) protect or defend the rights, property or safety of our company, our users, our employees, or others; (iii) comply with applicable law or cooperate with law enforcement; or (iv) enforce the TOS or other agreements or policies between you and us related to the Site or the Services.

Notice about Social Security Numbers

We do not collect social security numbers of customers or other users, and you should not provide such information to Blue KC.  Nonetheless, if Blue KC comes into possession of users’ social security numbers or collects such information in the future, the information will be treated confidentially and not shared with third parties unless allowed by law.  Additionally, Blue KC will take reasonable steps to limit the access to such social security numbers and take legally required steps to secure the transmission of the data containing such social security numbers.

Third Party Privacy Policies May Be Applicable

This Privacy Policy does not cover any third party’s use or handling of your information once it is shared.  Instead, the privacy policies of the third party(ies) will govern.  We encourage you to visit the websites of those third parties and fully read and understand their privacy policies.  Some of these entities or their servers may be located outside the United States.

Links

The Site may contain links to other websites.  Blue KC disclaims any responsibility for the privacy practices of third parties that may have links to or from our website, or any framed content on our website.  We encourage you to review the privacy policies/statements of every website that you visit that collects personally identifiable information.

Opt-Out & Information Retention

DO NOT TRACK REQUESTS

In some states, users may be entitled to know how we respond to “Do Not Track” browser settings.  There is little consensus in the industry about what “Do Not Track” means; however, at this time we do not recognize “Do Not Track” signals as an opt-out for the sharing of your data with third parties.  You may still need to contact any third-party companies (including those who may have cookies or beacons on the Site) to direct them to not share your data with third parties as well. To learn more or opt-out from data collection by third-party companies you can visit:  http://www.networkadvertising.org/choices or www.aboutads.info/choices/

Opt-Out Provisions and Updating Your Information

We value our users’ privacy and provide them with the option to “opt-out” of having their information used for purposes not directly related to the Site or the Services.  If you wish to opt-out, you can opt-out by any of the following means:

  • Send a written request to: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, P.O. Box 417012, Kansas City, MO 64141; or
  • E-mail Privacy@bluekc.com

Your request will generally be responded to within three (3) business days if your request is via e-mail, or thirty (30) days if your request is via United States mail.

Please note that changing your opt-out preference will only affect future activities or communications from us.  In other words, if we already provided your information to a third party before you changed your opt-out preferences, you will need to contact the third party directly.  To opt-out of communications from our third-party business partners, if any, please contact them directly.

Information Retention and Security

We may store your information for more than one (1) year from the time of initial submission, as well as automated personal information we collect about you.  However, if we obtain or collect your social security number or credit card number, that information will only be stored for a limited time pursuant to your authorization unless the law requires otherwise.

We take reasonable security measures to protect users’ information against unauthorized access, loss, alteration, or destruction.  These measures include encryption and physical security measures to guard against unauthorized access to systems where we store personal information, and the usage of reputable third-party vendors.  Despite these reasonable measures, we cannot guarantee our security measures are impenetrable.  Therefore, although we take reasonable steps to secure your information, we cannot and do not promise or warrant that your information will always remain secure.

Terms & Limitations

Visitors Outside the United States

This Privacy Policy is intended to cover collection of information on the Site and users of the Service from residents of the United States. The laws in other countries may or may not be as comprehensive as those in the United States.  If you are a resident of another country and/or are visiting the Site or using the Service from outside the United States, you acknowledge and agree that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States where our servers are located and our central database is operated.  You also acknowledge that your use of the Site or the Services shall be governed exclusively by the laws of Missouri and as if all transactions with us or otherwise through the Site or use of the Services take place within Missouri.  By using the Site and/or the Services, you acknowledge and agree that your information may be transferred to our facilities and those third parties with whom we share it as described in this Privacy Policy.  If you are unwilling to accept these terms, then you agree that you will not use or access the Site or our Services.

Privacy Policy Updates and Revisions

This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time.  We reserve the right to modify this Privacy Policy at any time without notice, so please review this Privacy Policy frequently.  When changes are made to this Privacy Policy, we will revise the “last updated” date at the top of this Privacy Policy.  If we make any material changes in the way we collect, use, and/or share your personal information, we will also post notice of the changes on the Site and/or may notify you by sending an e-mail to the e-mail address you most recently provided us under your account.  Your continued use of the Site or any Services after we have posted any Privacy Policy changes indicates your agreement to such changes unless you notify us otherwise.

If you wish to retain a copy of this Privacy Policy, you should print a copy for your records.

Terms of Privacy Policy Survive

If any terms of this Privacy Policy are held invalid and/or unenforceable by a court of law or a competent jurisdiction, the remaining provisions of this Privacy Policy shall remain in full force and effect.

SUPPLEMENTAL PRIVACY POLICY APPLICABLE TO CALIFORNIA, COLORADO, CONNECTICUT, VIRGINIA, UTAH, MONTANA, TENNESSEE, OREGON, TEXAS, IOWA, INDIANA, AND DELAWARE RESIDENTS ONLY.

The disclosures in this section (and linked Supplemental Privacy Policy) apply only to individual residents of the States of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, Utah, Montana, Tennessee, Oregon, Texas, Iowa, Indiana, Delaware as applicable. The Supplemental Policy provides additional information about how we collect, use, disclose, and otherwise process personal information within the scope of the California Consumer Privacy act of 2018, as amended, including its implementing regulations (“CCPA”), Colorado Privacy Act (“CPA”), Connecticut Data Privacy Act (“CTDPA”), Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (“VCDPA”), Utah Consumer Privacy Act (“UCPA”), Montana Consumer Data Privacy Act (“MTCDPA”), Tennessee Information Protection Act (“TIPA”), Oregon Consumer Privacy Act (“OCPA”), Texas Data Privacy and Security Act (“TDPSA”), Iowa Consumer Data Protection Act (“ICDPA”), Indiana Consumer Data Protection Act (“INCDPA”), and the Delaware Personal Data Privacy Act (“DPDPA”). Residents of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, Utah, Montana, Tennessee, Oregon, Texas, Iowa, Indiana, and Delaware Residents can click here: To review the Supplemental Privacy Policy.

POLICY APPLICABLE TO NEVADA RESIDENTS ONLY.

If you are a Nevada resident, you may opt-out of the sale of your personal information.  To do so, please contact us at Privacy@bluekc.com and title the subject of your email “Nevada Privacy Rights Opt-Out Request”.  In response, we will request information from you to verify your identity.  We will attempt to respond to your request, once verified, within sixty (60) calendar days.

Limitations

The adoption or publication of this Privacy Policy does not subject Blue KC to any stricter duty in its collection, handling, storage and disclosure of nonpublic information than otherwise applies to Blue KC under applicable law.  No person or entity shall have any right or recourse against Blue KC nor any of its affiliates, agents, sponsors, or other related parties based on any alleged violation of or noncompliance with this Privacy Policy.  This Privacy Policy is subject to applicable law as well as any separate contract that may be signed between Blue KC and you.

Questions & Complaints

If you have questions or concerns regarding the privacy of your information, please contact:

General Contact

Privacy Office
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City
P.O. Box 417012
Kansas City, MO 64141
816-395-3784 or toll free at 1-800-932-1114
Privacy@bluekc.com