Terms of Service
Effective Date: July 12, 2025
1. Acceptance of the Terms
By accessing or using ERWaitTimes.org, our widgets, APIs, or any related services (the "Services"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you do not accept every provision, do not use the Services. Browsing the site constitutes legally sufficient notice and assent under U.S. contract law for online terms.
2. Important Health & Safety Disclaimers
No Medical Advice
Content is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always call 911 (or your local emergency number) for life-threatening conditions.
Wait-Time Estimates Only
Posted times are dynamic projections that can change immediately and are not guaranteed; the sickest patients are always seen first.
No Provider-Patient Relationship
Use of the Services does not create a physician–patient or hospital–patient relationship.
3. Eligibility & User Account Basics
You must be at least 13 years old to use the Services.
If you create an optional account or API key, you are responsible for safeguarding credentials and for all activity under them.
4. License & Permitted Use
ER Wait Times ("EWT," "we," "us," or "our") grants you a limited, revocable, non-transferable license to access and display the Services solely for personal, non-commercial purposes. Any other use—such as resale, data scraping, or load testing—requires written permission.
5. Prohibited Conduct
You agree not to:
Access, monitor, or copy the Services using bots, spiders, or scrapers.
Reverse-engineer the code or data models.
Upload malicious code, interfere with security, or attempt unauthorized access.
Use the Services to discourage or delay necessary emergency care.
6. Intellectual-Property Rights
All text, graphics, logos, data compilations, and underlying software are owned by or licensed to EWT and protected by U.S. and international intellectual-property laws. ER WAIT TIMES and related marks are our trademarks. Nothing herein transfers ownership.
7. Feedback & Submitted Content
If you submit feedback, ideas, or bug reports ("Feedback"), you grant EWT a perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free license to use, reproduce, and create derivative works from that Feedback without compensation.
8. Third-Party Links & Content
The Services may contain links to third-party websites. EWT does not endorse or control those sites and is not responsible for their content or your use of them.
9. Disclaimer of Warranties
THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE." TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, EWT DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING ACCURACY, RELIABILITY, MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. We do not warrant that wait-time data will be error-free, timely, or suitable for any specific situation.
10. Limitation of Liability
To the fullest extent permitted by Illinois law, EWT, its officers, employees, and partners shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages (including lost profits, lost data, personal injury, or wrongful death) arising out of or related to your use of the Services—even if advised of the possibility. Our aggregate liability for all claims shall not exceed one hundred U.S. dollars (US $100). Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so portions may not apply to you.
11. Indemnification
You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless EWT and its affiliates from any claims, damages, costs, and attorneys' fees arising from: (a) your breach of these Terms; (b) your misuse of the Services; or (c) your violation of any law or rights of a third party.
12. Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)
If you believe content on the Services infringes your copyright, send a notice containing the required DMCA elements to marketing@erwaittimes.org. We may remove or disable access to the reported material and, if appropriate, terminate repeat infringers.
13. Governing Law & Venue
These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Illinois, County of DuPage, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. Any suit arising from these Terms or the Services shall be litigated exclusively in the state or federal courts located in DuPage County, Illinois, and you consent to personal jurisdiction there.
14. Dispute Resolution (Optional Arbitration Clause)
Either party may elect to resolve any claim (except claims for injunctive relief) through binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Consumer Arbitration Rules. If no party elects arbitration, disputes proceed in the courts named in § 13. YOU AND EWT WAIVE THE RIGHT TO A JURY TRIAL.
15. Modifications to the Terms
We may update these Terms at any time. Material changes will be posted on this page with a new "Effective Date" and, where required by law, we will provide additional notice. Continued use of the Services after changes constitutes acceptance.
16. Term & Termination
These Terms remain in effect until terminated. We may suspend or terminate access to the Services at any time for any or no reason, including violation of these Terms. Sections 6–14 survive termination.
17. Severability
If any provision of these Terms is held unlawful or unenforceable, the remaining sections shall remain in full force.
18. Entire Agreement
These Terms (alongside our Privacy Policy) constitute the entire agreement between you and EWT regarding the Services and supersede prior oral or written agreements.
19. Contact Us
All inquiries—whether general, legal, privacy-related, or DMCA notices—should be sent to marketing@erwaittimes.org.