How does one gather their scattered medical records?

Dear Reader, 

It’s great that you’re working to organize your medical history! This can help you take control of your health care going forward and can also help providers to give you the most well-informed care possible. The good news is that, if all your health care was done in the US, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) gives you the right to access almost all of your medical records from any health care provider or hospital that you’ve previously visited. However, there’s no single place where you can get all your records. This means the process of collecting information from various providers can be a bit complicated but read on to learn a bit more about how to get started! 

How can you get access to your medical records? 

How you access your medical records can vary. Some providers require you to submit a request in writing, while others might have a specific form to fill out. No matter their process, HIPAA requires that health care providers share your records with you quickly and in a manner that’s convenient.  

In most cases, a health care provider must give you your records in your preferred format (such as paper or electronic) within a month. There are, however, a few exceptions to this. For example, you might not be given access to a mental health professional’s private notes, but you may be able to access a log of when you met with them.   

Additionally, they may charge a small fee, but they can only charge you as much as it costs them to retrieve the record. That said, many states have their own laws that might require a provider to produce the records on a shorter timeline or limit how much they can charge you.  

How can you compile scattered medical records? 

Unfortunately, there isn’t a way to request all your different records from all your different providers at once—you have to submit a request to each provider individually. A good way to start might be to write down all the different hospitals or medical facilities you’ve been to, as well as any treatments you’ve gotten. Each facility may have its own processes and policies for submitting and responding to requests. A bit of research online or calling might help you during the information collection phase of this process. 

How recently you visited may impact how easy or difficult it is to collect your records. Medical facilities aren’t required to keep records indefinitely, so if it’s been a while since your last visit, they might not have the information you’re searching for on file.  

These rules can vary by state, by hospital, and even by the age of the patient. For example, in New York state, hospitals are required to keep most records for at least six years, or until adulthood if the patient is a minor. Researching the laws for the state of each hospital or medical facility before you contact them might help you feel a bit better prepared. 

How can you keep track of your medical records after you’ve collected them? 

Compiling a list of health care encounters you’ve had can be challenging, but there are a few ways to make it simpler. If your provider uses a patient portal, you may be able to use that to access and keep your records. These portals host records of your visits, medications, vaccinations, and more, and they often allow for direct communication with your health care provider. This portal may also include a health history that allows you to include information about previous encounters with health care providers. You may have more than one patient portal if you’ve seen providers at different facilities. You may be able to find more information on a facility’s website or by reaching out to them directly.  

If you prefer a paper record, that’s fine too! Once you have collected the information you can print it out and store it in a file in a safe location.  

However you decide to organize your information, try noting key information like admission dates, medication details, doctors’ contact information, or dates of various appointments and visits in one location. This can make it easier to keep track of medical information going forward! 

HIPAA hooray and here’s to you, for taking control of your health care!