Amends TCA Title 63 and Title 68.

This bill revises provisions governing the costs of copying and mailing of healthcare records, including records relevant to a social security disability case, as discussed below. Under present law, unless restricted by state or federal law or regulation, a hospital must furnish to a patient or a patient's authorized representative such part or parts of the patient's hospital records without unreasonable delay upon request in writing by the patient or the representative. Present law provides that the party requesting the patient's records is responsible for the reasonable costs of copying and mailing the patient's records. This bill revises this provision to instead provide that if the records are available in paper or film forms only, and if the provider of records attests or certifies that the records were maintained in paper or film only, then the authorized party requesting the patient's records is responsible for the reasonable costs of copying and mailing the patient's records. Under present law, the charges to a patient or a lawyer authorized by the patient to review the patient's records must not exceed the reasonable costs for copying and the actual costs of mailing the records. Present law presumes that the following charges are reasonable: $18.00, which includes the first five pages of the medical record and a per page charge of 85 cents a page for the sixth page, up to and including the 50th page; 60 cents a page for the fifty-first page up to the 250th page and 35 cents a page for all pages thereafter; and a fee for certifying medical records, not to exceed $20.00 for each record certified. This bill adds that: (1) In social security disability cases for a non-indigent individual, if a patient, a patient's legal representative, or a person authorized by the patient requests copies of the patient's healthcare records under this section for use in appealing a denial of social security disability insurance or supplemental security income under federal law, then the hospital may charge $20.00, or no more than the reimbursement amount that the disability determination services section within the division of rehabilitation services of the department of human services reimburses the hospital, for copies of the patient's healthcare records; (2) If records are provided in an electronic format, then the provider may charge no more than a flat fee of $20.00, plus the actual cost of shipping if the records are shipped on portable media. The provider of records may not charge copying or scanning costs for records that are already maintained in an electronic form. If some of the records are stored in paper form and other records are stored in electronic form, then the provider of records must either bill for each production separately depending on its form, or bill for all productions as if all records were electronic records; and (3) Providers of records may not charge a fee for searching for records. This bill makes similar revisions in the present law provisions governing a healthcare provider furnishing medical records to a patient or the patient's representative. Under present law, the party requesting the patient's records is responsible to the provider for the reasonable costs of copying and mailing such patient's records. For other than records involving workers' compensation cases, such reasonable costs may not exceed $20.00 for medical records five pages or less in length and 50 cents per page for each page copied after the first five pages and the actual cost of mailing. This bill revises these provisions to specify that the requesting party is responsible for the costs only if a patient's records are available in paper or film forms only, and if the provider of records attests or certifies that the records were maintained in paper or film only. This bill adds that if the patient's records are provided in an electronic format, then the provider may charge no more than a flat fee of $20.00, plus the actual cost of shipping if the records are shipped on portable media. This bill prohibits the provider of records from charging copying or scanning costs for records that are already maintained in an electronic form. Also, like described above for hospitals, this bill provides that in social security disability cases the healthcare provider may charge the patient, the patient's legal representative, or person authorized by the patient $20.00, or no more than the reimbursement amount that the disability determination services section within the division of rehabilitation services of the department of human services reimburses the provider, for copies of the patient's healthcare records. However, a search fee will not be charged if no medical records are located in response to the request.