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Ohio Health Records Law
3701.74 Examining or obtaining medical records; time; civil actions
(A) As used in this section and section 3701.741 of the Revised Code:
(1) "Ambulatory care facility" means a facility that provides medical, diagnostic, or surgical treatment to patients who do not require hospitalization, including a dialysis center, ambulatory surgical facility, cardiac catheterization facility, diagnostic imaging center, extracorporeal shock wave lithotripsy center, home health agency, inpatient hospice, birthing center, radiation therapy center, emergency facility, and an urgent care center. "Ambulatory care facility" does not include the private office of a physician or dentist, whether the office is for an individual or group practice.
(2) "Chiropractor" means an individual licensed under Chapter 4734. of the Revised Code to practice chiropractic.
(3) "Emergency facility" means a hospital emergency department or any other facility that provides emergency medical services.
(4) "Health care practitioner" means all of the following:
(a) A dentist or dental hygienist licensed under Chapter 4715. of the Revised Code;
(b) A registered or licensed practical nurse licensed under Chapter 4723. of the Revised Code;
(c) An optometrist licensed under Chapter 4725. of the Revised Code;
(d) A dispensing optician, spectacle dispensing optician, contact lens dispensing optician, or spectacle-contact lens dispensing optician licensed under Chapter 4725. of the Revised Code;
(e) A pharmacist licensed under Chapter 4729. of the Revised Code;
(f) A physician;
(g) A physician assistant authorized under Chapter 4730. of the Revised Code to practice as a physician assistant;
(h) A practitioner of a limited branch of medicine issued a certificate under Chapter 4731. of the Revised Code;
(i) A psychologist licensed under Chapter 4732. of the Revised Code;
(j) A chiropractor;
(k) A hearing aid dealer or fitter licensed under Chapter 4747. of the Revised Code;
(l) A speech-language pathologist or audiologist licensed under Chapter 4753. of the Revised Code;
(m) An occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant licensed under Chapter 4755. of the Revised Code;
(n) A physical therapist or physical therapy assistant licensed under Chapter 4755. of the Revised Code;
(o) A professional clinical counselor, professional counselor, social worker, or independent social worker licensed, or a social work assistant registered, under Chapter 4757. of the Revised Code;
(p) A dietitian licensed under Chapter 4759. of the Revised Code;
(q) A respiratory care professional licensed under Chapter 4761. of the Revised Code;
(r) An emergency medical technician-basic, emergency medical technician- intermediate, or emergency medical technician-paramedic certified under Chapter 4765. of the Revised Code.
(5) "Health care provider" means a hospital, ambulatory care facility, long- term care facility, pharmacy, emergency facility, or health care practitioner.
(6) "Hospital" has the same meaning as in section 3727.01 of the Revised Code.
(7) "Long-term care facility" means a nursing home, residential care facility, or home for the aging, as those terms are defined in section 3721.01 of the Revised Code; an adult care facility, as defined in section 3722.01 of the Revised Code; a nursing facility or intermediate care facility for the mentally retarded, as those terms are defined in section 5111.20 of the Revised Code; a facility or portion of a facility certified as a skilled nursing facility under Title XVIII of the "Social Security Act," 49 Stat. 286 (1965), 42 U.S.C.A. 1395, as amended.
(8) "Medical record" means data in any form that pertains to a patient's medical history, diagnosis, prognosis, or medical condition and that is generated and maintained by a health care provider in the process of the patient's health care treatment.
(9) "Medical records company" means a person who stores, locates, or copies medical records for a health care provider, or is compensated for doing so by a health care provider, and charges a fee for providing medical records to a patient or patient's representative.
(10) "Patient" means either of the following:
(a) An individual who received health care treatment from a health care provider;
(b) A guardian, as defined in section 1337.11 of the Revised Code, of an individual described in division (A)(10)(a) of this section.
(11) "Patient's representative" means a person to whom a patient has given written authorization to act on the patient's behalf regarding the patient's medical records, except that if the patient is deceased, "patient's representative" means the executor or administrator of the patient's estate or the person responsible for the patient's estate if it is not to be probated. "Patient's representative" does not include an insurer authorized under Title XXXIX of the Revised Code to do the business of sickness and accident insurance in this state or a health insuring corporation holding a certificate of authority under Chapter 1751. of the Revised Code.
(12) "Pharmacy" has the same meaning as in section 4729.01 of the Revised Code.
(13) "Physician" means a person authorized under Chapter 4731. of the Revised Code to practice medicine and surgery, osteopathic medicine and surgery, or podiatric medicine and surgery.
(B) A patient or patient's representative who wishes to examine or obtain a copy of part or all of a medical record shall submit to the health care provider a written request signed by the patient dated not more than sixty days before the date on which it is submitted. The patient or patient's representative who wishes to obtain a copy of the record shall indicate in the request whether the copy is to be sent to the patient's residence, physician or chiropractor, or representative, or held for the patient at the office of the health care provider. Within a reasonable time after receiving a request that meets the requirements of this division and includes sufficient information to identify the record requested, a health care provider that has the patient's medical records shall permit the patient to examine the record during regular business hours without charge or, on request, shall provide a copy of the record in accordance with section 3701.741 of the Revised Code, except that if a physician or chiropractor who has treated the patient determines for clearly stated treatment reasons that disclosure of the requested record is likely to have an adverse effect on the patient, the health care provider shall provide the record to a physician or chiropractor designated by the patient. The health care provider shall take reasonable steps to establish the identity of the person making the request to examine or obtain a copy of the patient's record.
(C) If a health care provider fails to furnish a medical record as required by division (B) of this section, the patient or patient's representative who requested the record may bring a civil action to enforce the patient's right of access to the record.
(D)(1) This section does not apply to medical records whose release is covered by section 173.20 or 3721.13 of the Revised Code, by Chapter 1347. or 5122. of the Revised Code, by 42 C.F.R. part 2, "Confidentiality of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Patient Records," or by 42 C.F.R. 483.10.
(2) Nothing in this section is intended to supersede the confidentiality provisions of sections 2305.24, 2305.25, 2305.251, and 2305.252 of the Revised Code.
3701.741 Fees for copies of medical records
(A) Through December 31, 2004, each health care provider and medical records company shall provide copies of medical records in accordance with this section.
(B) Except as provided in divisions (C) and (E) of this section, a health care provider or medical records company that receives a request for a copy of a patient's medical record may charge not more than the amounts set forth in this section. Total costs for copies and all services related to those copies shall not exceed the sum of the following:
(1) An initial fee of fifteen dollars, which shall compensate for the records search;
(2) With respect to data recorded on paper, the following amounts:
(a) One dollar per page for the first ten pages;
(b) Fifty cents per page for pages eleven through fifty;
(c) Twenty cents per page for pages fifty-one and higher.
(3) With respect to data recorded other than on paper, the actual cost of making the copy;
(4) The actual cost of any related postage incurred by the health care provider or medical records company.
(C) A health care provider or medical records company shall provide one copy without charge to the following:
(1) The bureau of workers' compensation, in accordance with Chapters 4121. and 4123. of the Revised Code and the rules adopted under those chapters;
(2) The industrial commission, in accordance with Chapters 4121. and 4123. of the Revised Code and the rules adopted under those chapters;
(3) The department of job and family services, in accordance with Chapter 5101. of the Revised Code and the rules adopted under those chapters;
(4) The attorney general, in accordance with sections 2743.51 to 2743.72 of the Revised Code and any rules that may be adopted under those sections;
(5) A patient or patient's representative if the medical record is necessary to support a claim under Title II or Title XVI of the "Social Security Act," 49 Stat. 620 (1935), 42 U.S.C.A. 401 and 1381, as amended, and the request is accompanied by documentation that a claim has been filed.
(D) Division (C) of this section shall not be construed to supersede any rule of the bureau of workers' compensation, the industrial commission, or the department of job and family services.
(E) A health care provider or medical records company may enter into a contract with a patient, a patient's representative, or an insurer for the copying of medical records at a fee other than as provided in division (B) of this section.
(F) This section does not apply to either of the following:
(1) Copies of medical records provided to insurers authorized under Title XXXIX of the Revised Code to do the business of sickness and accident insurance in this state or health insuring corporations holding a certificate of authority under Chapter 1751. of the Revised Code;
(2) Medical records the copying of which is covered by section 173.20 of the Revised Code or by 42 C.F.R. 483.10.
(G) Nothing in this section requires or precludes the distribution of medical records at any particular cost or fee to insurers authorized under Title XXXIX of the Revised Code to do the business of sickness and accident insurance in this state or health insuring corporations holding a certificate of authority under Chapter 1751. of the Revised Code.
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Jack Tolliver, M.D., J.D.Arden J. Curry
Arden J. Curry, II
James M. Sturgeon, Jr.
Thomas H. Vanderford, IV
David K. Schwirian
Susan Curry Brasselle
Elizabeth Ashley Summitt
Cindy Sloan, R.N.
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