MER maintains high standards for the protection of privacy over the Internet. The purpose of this statement is to explain what information we obtain, how it is used, and how visitors can restrict its use or disclosure.

The only information MER obtains about visitors to our website is information supplied voluntarily by the visitor. This means that you can visit our website without telling us who you are or revealing any information about yourself. Our web server recognizes which pages people visit on our site; a visitor's identity is not revealed.

Any personal information you may choose to provide to request information or to select services may be used the same way as information obtained offline, for example, to evaluate service needs and contact you regarding our services.

We do not sell or disclose individually-identifiable information obtained on-line unless it is required by law, or disclosure is necessary to protect the safety of customers, employees, or property. You may receive information from us regarding upcoming conferences in which you may be interested.

MER is committed to safeguarding customer privacy, and we require our employees to protect the privacy of information about our customers. We employ security measures to safeguard your transactions with us. Should you wish to delete your information from our files or discuss our privacy policy, please contact us.

What information do we collect?

We collect information from you when you register through the website, place an order, sign up for our newsletter, respond to a survey or communication such as e-mail, or participate in another site feature.

When ordering or registering, we may ask you for your name, e-mail address, mailing address, phone number, credit card information, or other information. You may, however, visit our site anonymously.

Like many websites, we use "cookies" to enhance your experience and gather information about visitors and visits to our websites. Please refer to the "Do we use 'cookies'?" section below for information about cookies and how we use them.

How do we use your information?

We may use the information we collect from you when you register, make a purchase, sign up for our newsletter, respond to a survey or marketing communication, surf the website, or use certain other site features in the following ways:

• To personalize your site experience and to allow us to deliver the type of content and product offerings in which you are most interested.
• To allow us to better serve you in responding to your customer service requests.
• To quickly process your transactions.
• To administer a contest, promotion, survey or other site feature.
• To send you periodic emails keeping you apprised of upcoming conferences and the latest company news and information.*
• To request your participation in surveys related to industry practices.

*Note: By registering for one of our conferences or making a request for information, you are opting in to receive our e-mail newsletter or have taken a CME course from us in the past. You may receive periodic e-mails from info@mer.org. If you would no longer like to receive promotional e-mail from us, you can do so by clicking the 'Unsubscribe' link at the bottom of the email message we send.

Transfer of Data:

We WILL NOT share your data with any other integrated platforms or third parties. Your information, including Personal Data, may be transferred to—and maintained on—computers located outside of your state, province, country, or other governmental jurisdiction where the data protection laws may differ from those in your jurisdiction. If you are located outside the United States and choose to provide information to us, please note that we transfer the data, including Personal Data, to the United States and process it there.  Your consent to this Privacy Policy, followed by your submission of such information, represents your agreement to that transfer.

MER will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy, and no transfer of your Personal Data will take place to an organization or a country unless there are adequate controls in place, including the security of your data and other personal information.

Security of Data

The security of your data is important to us, but remember that no method of transmission over the Internet, or method of electronic storage, is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your Personal Data, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

Do we use "cookies"?

Yes. Cookies are small files that a site or its service provider transfers to your computer's hard drive through your Web browser (if you allow) that enable the site's or service provider's systems to recognize your browser and capture and remember certain information. For instance, we use cookies to help us remember and process the items in your shopping cart. They are also used to help us understand your preferences based on previous or current site activity, which enables us to provide you with improved services. We also use cookies to help us compile anonymous, aggregate data about site traffic and site interaction so that we can offer better site experiences and tools in the future.

We may contract with third-party service providers to assist us in better understanding our site visitors. These service providers are not permitted to use the information collected on our behalf except to help us conduct and improve our business.

You can choose to have your computer warn you each time a cookie is being sent, or you can choose to turn off all cookies. You do this through your browser (like Internet Explorer or Firefox) settings. Each browser is a little different, so look at your browser's Help menu to learn the correct way to modify your cookies. If you turn cookies off, you won't have access to many features that make your site experience more efficient, and some of our services will not function properly. However, you can still place orders over the telephone by contacting customer service.

Do we disclose the information we collect to outside parties?

We do not sell, trade, or otherwise transfer to outside parties your personally identifiable information unless we provide you with advance notice, except as described below. The term "outside parties" does not include website hosting partners and other parties who assist us in operating our website, conducting our business, or servicing you, so long as those parties agree to keep this information confidential. We may also 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.

How can you opt out, remove, or modify information you have provided to us?

You can have all personal data regarding information requests and registrations by contacting our support staff at info@mer.org.

Third-party links

In an attempt to provide you with increased value, we may include third-party links on our site. These linked sites have separate and independent privacy policies. We therefore have no responsibility or liability for the content and activities of these linked sites. Nonetheless, we seek to protect the integrity of our site and welcome any feedback about these linked sites (including if a specific link does not work).

Changes to our policy

If we decide to change our privacy policy, we will post those changes on this page. Policy changes will apply only to information collected after the date of the change. This policy was last modified on April 24, 2012.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page.

We will let you know via email and/or a prominent notice on our Service, prior to the change becoming effective, and update the "effective date" at the top of this Privacy Policy.

You are advised to review this Privacy Policy periodically for any changes. Changes to this Privacy Policy are effective when they are posted on this page.

Questions and feedback

We welcome your questions, comments, and concerns about privacy. Please send us any feedback pertaining to privacy, or any other issue.

Online Policy Only

This online privacy policy applies only to information collected through our website and not to information collected offline.

Terms and Conditions

Please also visit our Terms and Conditions section establishing the use, disclaimers, and limitations of liability governing the use of our website.

Your consent

By using our site, you consent to our privacy policy.