Press Release Summary: Everyone had a right to see their medical records, but be aware they may not always get them.
Press Release Body: When suing a doctor for medical malpractice the first step is to get medical records. They're vitally important evidence. There's a saying in medical malpractice lawsuits (or medmal) that states, "If it isn't charted, it didn't happen." It should be easy to get medical records; after all, they are the personal property of each patient. Asking for them will produce them. Unfortunately, that isn't about to happen any time soon. There is the right under a federal law called Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to see, copy and make changes to medical records. This same act also protects patient's privacy. Health care providers are bound to follow HIPAA and that means patients usually have the right to copy their medical records or look at them. This must be done within 30 days of a request in writing. Expect to pay for the copying in Georgia. Corrections may be made to medical records and patients have the right to ask that incorrect information be changed or to have missing information added. These requests may be denied, and if so, there's the right to add a note to the file stating why the changes were requested. If patient rights are under HIPAA, then complaint may be filed in Georgia with the Composite Board of Medical Examiners and the Georgia Department of Human Resources. The major problem is the fact that the doctor and the hospital will know before a patient does that they goofed up. It's likely noted in the patient chart. It's not something they really want to be sharing with patients if they think they're about to face a lawsuit. Ultimately that may mean lost, misfiled or wrecked records that make a medmal lawsuit more difficult to litigate. In some cases records won't be produced unless pressure is applied. To speed up the process speak to a competent attorney with extensive experience in this area of law. They will issue a demand for patient medical records on their letterhead, if not also send someone to check the files themselves. Time is of the essence in medmal lawsuits, as statutes of limitations may prevent the ability to file a claim if a patient waits too long. Speak to a lawyer and find out when the statute of limitations kicks in and how to proceed with a medmal claim.
Even if a patient does succeed in getting their medical records, give them to the attorney of choice. They have certified nurses on staff etc. that can quickly organize a file and figure out what information is missing. Just because a file may have information missing, doesn’t mean there isn't an actionable cause. This is why talking to an experienced lawyer may make the difference between winning and losing.
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