Section 3701.741 | Fees for providing copies of medical records.
(A) 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 shall charge not more than the amounts set forth in this section.
(1)(a) Except as provided in division (B)(1)(b) of this section, if the request is made by the patient, the patient's personal representative, or an individual authorized to access the patient's medical record through a valid power of attorney, total costs for copies and all services related to those copies shall be reasonable, cost-based amounts permitted to be charged to the patient under federal laws and regulations. Any per page charges shall not exceed the sum of the per page charges authorized in division (B)(2)(b) and (c) of this section.
(b) If the request is made by a person identified in division (B)(1)(a) of this section and the request is for access to digital records or electronically transmitted records, the total cost for that access or for the electronic transmission, and all related services, shall not exceed fifty dollars.
(2) If the request is made by anyone other than a person identified in division (B)(1)(a) of this section, total costs for copies and all services related to those copies shall not exceed the sum of the following:
(a) An initial fee of sixteen dollars and eighty-four cents adjusted in accordance with section 3701.742 of the Revised Code, which shall compensate for the records search;
(b) Except as provided in division (B)(2)(c) of this section, with respect to data recorded on paper or electronically, the following amounts adjusted in accordance with section 3701.742 of the Revised Code:
(i) One dollar and eleven cents per page for the first ten pages;
(ii) Fifty-seven cents per page for pages eleven through fifty;
(iii) Twenty-three cents per page for pages fifty-one and higher.
(c) With respect to data resulting from an x-ray, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), or computed axial tomography (CAT) scan and recorded on paper or film, one dollar and eighty-seven cents per page;
(d) The actual cost of any related postage incurred by the health care provider or medical records company.
(C)(1) On request, a health care provider or medical records company shall provide one copy of the patient's medical record and one copy of any records regarding treatment performed subsequent to the original request, not including copies of records already provided, without charge to the following:
(a) The bureau of workers' compensation, in accordance with Chapters 4121. and 4123. of the Revised Code and the rules adopted under those chapters;
(b) The industrial commission, in accordance with Chapters 4121. and 4123. of the Revised Code and the rules adopted under those chapters;
(c) The department of medicaid or a county department of job and family services, in accordance with Chapters 5160., 5161., 5162., 5163., 5164., 5165., 5166., and 5167. of the Revised Code and the rules adopted under those chapters;
(d) 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;
(e) A patient, patient's personal representative, or authorized person 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.
(2) Nothing in division (C)(1) of this section requires a health care provider or medical records company to provide a copy without charge to any person or entity not listed in division (C)(1) of this section.
(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 medicaid.
(E) A health care provider or medical records company may enter into a contract with either of the following for the copying of medical records at a fee other than as provided in division (B) of this section:
(1) A patient, a patient's personal representative, or an authorized person;
(2) An insurer 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.
(F) This section does not apply to medical records the copying of which is covered by section 173.20 of the Revised Code or by 42 C.F.R. 483.10.
Last updated September 20, 2023 at 12:10 PM
Available Versions of this Section
- September 29, 2013 – House Bill 59 - 130th General Assembly [ View September 29, 2013 Version ]
- October 3, 2023 – Amended by House Bill 33 - 135th General Assembly [ View October 3, 2023 Version ]