Terms of Use

Last updated: December 23, 2024

Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using Vida Life ("we," "us," "our," or the "Platform"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Use ("Terms"). If you do not agree to these Terms, please do not use our Platform.

These Terms constitute a legally binding agreement between you and Vida Life Foundation. We may update these Terms from time to time, and your continued use of the Platform constitutes acceptance of any changes.

Critical Medical & Safety Notice

CRITICAL: Vida Life is a social platform, not a healthcare provider, medical practice, hospital, emergency service, or crisis response service.

Verified professionals (doctors, researchers) are identified with special badges and are the only users authorized to provide medical advice within their licensed scope of practice
Non-verified users may share personal experiences but must not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment recommendations
Content violation - Unauthorized medical advice may be removed and may result in immediate account suspension or permanent ban
Institution administrators and community staff may enforce local community guidelines in addition to these Terms
No content on the Platform (including posts, comments, chats, and direct messages) is guaranteed accurate, complete, safe, or appropriate for your situation
Report violations - If you encounter unauthorized medical advice or dangerous content, immediately flag and report it so administrators can review it
If you are experiencing a medical emergency, contact local emergency services immediately

By using Vida Life, you acknowledge that you assume full responsibility for how you use information on the Platform and that, to the maximum extent permitted by law, Vida Life Foundation, its affiliates, and participating institutions, foundations, associations, community hosts, administrators, moderators, staff, volunteers, contractors, officers, directors, employees, and representatives are not liable for injury, death, or other harm arising from reliance on user-generated content.

No Duty to Monitor; Moderation Not Guaranteed

Vida Life may use moderation tools and may review content, but has no duty to monitor all content or communications.

Moderation actions, delays, or inaction do not create liability for Vida Life Foundation or participating institutions, foundations, associations, and their personnel.
Community moderation is discretionary and cannot guarantee prevention of harmful, unlawful, or inaccurate content.
Where required by applicable law, we provide information about available reporting channels, moderation actions, and review pathways.

Eligibility

To use Vida Life, you must:

Be at least 13 years of age
If under 16, have parental or guardian consent
Be capable of forming a binding contract
Not be prohibited from using the Platform under applicable laws
Have a legitimate connection to rare disease or health condition communities

Minors: Users between 13-16 years old must have verifiable parental consent. We implement additional privacy protections for minor accounts and parents may request access to or deletion of their child's information at any time.

Account Registration

When creating an account, you agree to:

Provide accurate and complete information
Maintain the security of your account credentials
Promptly update any changes to your information
Accept responsibility for all activities under your account
Notify us immediately of any unauthorized activity
Not create multiple accounts for the same person
Not transfer or sell your account to others

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms or that we reasonably believe pose a risk to the community.

Community Guidelines

Vida Life is built on mutual respect, support, and understanding. All users must:

Respectful Behavior

Treat all community members with respect and empathy
Respect privacy and confidentiality of others
Use inclusive and supportive language
Honor different perspectives and experiences
Report concerning behavior to moderators

Content Standards

Share experiences honestly and constructively
Respect intellectual property rights
Mark sensitive content appropriately
Verify information before sharing medical resources
Follow institution-specific guidelines

Content & Intellectual Property

Your Content

You retain ownership of content you post. By sharing content on Vida Life, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to:

Display and distribute your content on the Platform
Allow other users to view and interact with your content
Anonymize your content if you leave the community
Use anonymized content for research purposes (with consent)

Platform Content

Vida Life and its licensors own all rights to the Platform's design, functionality, and proprietary content. You may not copy, modify, or distribute Platform content without permission.

Prohibited Activities

You agree NOT to:

Provide medical advice unless you are a verified healthcare professional with a special badge acting within your scope of practice
Harass, bully, or threaten other users
Share false or misleading health information
Violate privacy by sharing others' personal information
Spam or advertise without authorization
Impersonate another person or entity
Use automated systems to access the Platform
Attempt to breach security measures
Violate any applicable laws or regulations
Promote dangerous or illegal activities

International Use

Vida Life operates globally with region-specific compliance:

You are responsible for compliance with your local laws
Content may be subject to different regulations in different countries
We store data in accordance with regional requirements
Some features may not be available in all regions

By using Vida Life from any location, you consent to the transfer and processing of your information in accordance with these Terms and applicable laws.

Termination

Your Rights

You may delete your account at any time. Upon deletion:

Your personal data is immediately deleted
Public content is anonymized to preserve community value
Private channels and messages are deleted
This action cannot be reversed

Note: For detailed information about data handling when you leave a community, including content anonymization and what gets deleted, please see our "When You Leave a Community" section in the .

Our Rights

We may suspend or terminate accounts that:

Violate these Terms or Community Guidelines
Pose a risk to user safety or privacy
Engage in illegal activities
Are inactive for extended periods

Disclaimers & Limitations

THE PLATFORM IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED.

To the maximum extent permitted by law:

We do not guarantee uninterrupted service, error-free operation, or content accuracy
We are not liable for user-generated content or interactions, including direct messages
We are not responsible for third-party services or links
We do not provide medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or emergency response services
We do not guarantee moderation will detect, review, or remove all harmful, unlawful, or inaccurate content
Nothing in these Terms excludes rights that cannot be waived under applicable law

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, VIDA LIFE FOUNDATION, ITS AFFILIATES, AND PARTICIPATING INSTITUTIONS, FOUNDATIONS, ASSOCIATIONS, COMMUNITY HOSTS, ADMINISTRATORS, MODERATORS, STAFF, VOLUNTEERS, CONTRACTORS, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AND REPRESENTATIVES SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR ANY INJURY, DEATH, OR OTHER LOSS ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO USER-GENERATED CONTENT, USER INTERACTIONS, OR RELIANCE ON INFORMATION SHARED THROUGH THE PLATFORM.

Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Vida Life Foundation, its affiliates, and participating institutions, foundations, associations, community hosts, administrators, moderators, staff, volunteers, contractors, officers, directors, employees, and representatives from any and all claims, liabilities, damages, losses, judgments, settlements, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or related to:

Your content, statements, recommendations, or interactions (including direct messages)
Your use of the Platform
Your violation of these Terms, community rules, or applicable law
Your violation of any third-party rights
Any claim that another person relied on your health-related content and suffered harm, including bodily injury or death
Any settlement amounts, judgments, penalties, fines, and legal costs linked to such claims
Your breach of any representation, warranty, or obligation under these Terms
This indemnity applies only to the extent permitted by applicable law and does not require indemnification for a protected party's own fraud, willful misconduct, or gross negligence where prohibited by law

Upon request, you will defend claims with counsel reasonably acceptable to Vida Life. Vida Life may assume control of defense at your expense, and you may not settle any claim in a manner that imposes obligations on any protected party without prior written consent.

Participating institutions, foundations, associations, and their personnel are express third-party beneficiaries of this Section and may enforce it directly.

This Section survives termination of your account and these Terms.

Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws applicable to your location:

Nothing in these Terms limits rights or remedies that cannot be waived under applicable law.

United States: Laws of California, USA
Canada: Laws of Ontario, Canada
European Union: Laws of Ireland
Other regions: Laws of California, USA as default

For U.S. users, including California residents, these Terms do not limit liability where limitation is prohibited by law, including for fraud, willful injury, or unlawful violations.
For consumers residing in Ontario, any mandatory arbitration or class action waiver applies only to the extent permitted by applicable consumer protection law.
For users in the EU/EEA, these Terms do not exclude or limit liability where such exclusion is prohibited by mandatory consumer law, including non-waivable protections for death or personal injury where applicable.

Disputes will be resolved under the procedures of the applicable jurisdiction. If mandatory arbitration is not enforceable in your jurisdiction, you may pursue claims in courts available to you.

Changes to Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we make changes:

We'll update the "Last updated" date at the top
The information contained in this website is subject to change without prior notice
Your continued use after changes means you accept the updated Terms
If you disagree with changes, you may delete your account

Contact Us

For questions about these Terms of Use, please contact us:

Privacy inquiries: [email protected]

Mailing Address:

Vida Life Foundation

Legal Department

1769 Hillsdale Ave #24955

San Jose, CA 95154

USA