Amendments to Charges for Medical Records
Effective Jan. 1, 2021
AS A PATIENT, YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR –
GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES –
AMENDMENT TO CHARGES FOR MEDICAL RECORDS –
In the notice published at 49 Pa.B. 7252 (December 7, 2019), the Department of Health (Department) published the guidelines and fees that a health care provider or facility may charge in response to a request for production of medical charts or records. (42 Pa.C.S. §§ 6152, 6152.1, and 6155). This notice updates the notice published on December 7, 2019.
Under 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 6152, 6152.1, and 6155 (relating to subpoena of records; limit on charges; and rights of patients), a health care provider or facility is allowed to charge a fee in response to a request for medical charts or records. The Secretary of Health ("Secretary"), under 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 6152 and 6152.1, is directed to adjust annually the amounts which may be charged by the health care provider or facility.
The Secretary is directed to base these adjustments on the most recent changes in the Consumer Price Index reported annually by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor. For the annual period of October 31, 2019, through October 31, 2020, the Consumer Price Index was 1.2%.
Accordingly, effective January 1, 2021, the following fees may be charged by a health care facility or health care provider in response to a request for production of medical charts or records:
