Establishment of a Publicly Accessible Database for Determining the Location of Medical Records of Retired or Relocated Physicians
MEDCHI, THE MARYLAND STATE MEDICAL SOCIETY
HOUSE OF DELEGATES
INTRODUCED BY: Montgomery County Medical Society
SUBJECT: Establishment of a Publicly Accessible Database for Determining the Location of Medical Records of Retired or Relocated Physicians
REFERRED TO:
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Whereas, patients often face significant difficulties in locating their medical records after their
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physician has retired or relocated, especially when several years have passed since the
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physician left practice; and
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Whereas, continuity of care and the ability to access historical medical records are critical to
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ensuring patients receive appropriate and timely medical treatment; and
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Whereas, the lack of a centralized, publicly accessible database for locating medical records
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creates unnecessary barriers for patients and places a burden on them to navigate complex
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processes to retrieve their own health information; and
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Whereas, patients may be unaware of where their medical records are stored after a physician
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retires or moves, leading to delays in obtaining important medical information for ongoing
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care; and
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Whereas, many states have implemented policies or regulations requiring retired or relocated
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physicians to inform patients or state medical boards of the location of their medical records,
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but Maryland currently lacks a standardized, easily accessible system for this purpose; and
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Whereas, establishing a centralized database, which would contain no PHI, managed by the
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Maryland Board of Physicians, would streamline the process for patients to locate their
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medical records, reduce administrative burdens on healthcare providers, and enhance patient
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care; therefore be it
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RESOLVED, that MedChi seek and/or support legislation or regulation that requires the
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Maryland Board of Physicians to establish and maintain a publicly accessible database where
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patients can easily find the location of their medical records and/or information on how to
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access the medical records of retired or relocated physicians; and that MedChi advocate for
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legislation and/or regulatory measures, if necessary, to require physicians who retire, relocate,
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or otherwise close their practice to inform the Maryland Board of Physicians of the storage
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location for patient medical records, to ensure this information is available in the database for
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a minimum of 7 years following the physician’s departure from practice.