Patients in need of records currently must pay fees for records access
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Dave Sunday announced that thousands of Medicaid patients formerly treated at Crozer Health hospitals will have free access to their medical records, following an agreement and subsequent ruling this week by a federal bankruptcy court judge.
The agreement, which will eliminate current per-record fees, is being finalized and is expected to go into effect soon. Crozer patients in need of records are encouraged to standby to avoid paying fees for records. We will provide another update when the agreement is finalized.
Earlier this year, Prospect Medical Holdings closed all Crozer Health facilities and services, following years of mismanagement which led to bankruptcy. Patients who formerly were treated at the Delaware County-based Crozer system are in the process of finding new providers. Patients should have their medical records during that process.
The Office of Attorney General is a party in Prospect’s bankruptcy court proceedings, and recently notified the presiding court that Crozer patients — including Medicaid patients — were encountering fees to acquire their medical records.
The Office of Attorney General cited federal and state law that regulates fees for medical records, which led to a resolution this week that is expected to spare up to 43,000 patients of fees related to acquiring medical records.
The Foundation for Delaware County has agreed to contribute funding to costs related to the records access.
“While our efforts to keep open Crozer facilities were unfortunately unsuccessful, we continue to advocate for impacted Pennsylvanians who are evaluating options for healthcare,” Attorney General Sunday said. “Among those expected to benefit from this recent resolution are Medicaid patients who cannot afford unexpected fees just so they can have access to records needed to continue care elsewhere.”
Under the current per-record fee structure, patients could potentially encounter hundreds of dollars in fees, as some patients have several records.
A Patient Care Ombudsman testified during a recent hearing, advocating for patient access to records.
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