Medical Billing Forum

Billing => Billing => : jessicam November 03, 2009, 03:48:46 PM

: request for medical records
: jessicam November 03, 2009, 03:48:46 PM

I have a patient who requested her medical records to go to another doctor but she has an outstanding balance that she's making payments on but not consistantly.  Can I ask for the balance in full before releasing the records?

: Re: request for medical records
: Pay_My_Claims November 03, 2009, 03:57:37 PM

you can ask........LOL

: Re: request for medical records
: cconter November 06, 2009, 12:41:22 PM

Unfortunately, no. You cannot withhold her records until payment in full is received.  Although I often wish we could! ;) HIPAA laws specifically outline patients' rights to access/copies of their medical records.  You CAN charge a per-page fee to copy the records. That fee you can demand prior to release unless withholding the records would cause a life-threatening situation.  States' laws vary on the amount per page.