What happens to medical records?

What happens to a person's medical records after death?

• Answer:

  Medical records contain paper or electronic histories of patient medical care and treatment throughout the life of the patient. After death, many different factors affect retention of and access to the deceased patient's medical record.Record AccessThe death of a patient does not automatically grant unauthorized access to the deceased patient's record. State and government laws provide guidelines for access. For example, HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) states that a deceased patient record may be released to the next of kin or to an executor or administrator of the deceased patient's estate.Organizational RequirementsType of healthcare facility also influences record retention for both living and deceased patients. For example, healthcare organizations serving children must retain records longer than acute care facilities like hospitals.Laws and RegulationsFederal and state laws govern the retention of medical records. For example, most states require hospitals to maintain adult medical records for an average of seven to 10 years after discharge, including deceased patient records.Extenuating CircumstancesA deceased patient's medical record may be kept indefinitely. Extenuating circumstances include examples like documentation of a patient's unhappiness with care or an impending or current lawsuit.Destruction of RecordsOnce a record meets the legal and regulatory requirements for inactivity, healthcare facilities may destroy the deceased patient records.Source:http://www.physiciansnews.com/law/1206turcotte.htmlhttp://medicalrecordrights.georgetown.edu/stateguides/va/va.pdfMore Information:http://library.ahima.org/xpedio/groups/public/documents/ahima/bok1_012545.hcsp?dDocName=bok1_012545http://www.apha.org/about/Public+Health+Links/LinksStateandLocalHealthDepartments.htm