Summary of Your Rights
In Minnesota you have the right to:
You can learn more about these rights in the following sections of guide.
Who Has to Follow These Laws?
Most Minnesota health care providers must follow both the HIPAA Privacy Rule and state laws that give patients rights in their medical records.
There are some health care providers, however, that do not have to follow the HIPAA Privacy Rule. The HIPAA Privacy Rule only covers health care providers that use computers to send health information for certain administrative or financial purposes (such as filing claims for insurance).
Sometimes Ashley goes to a doctor at a free clinic for medical treatment. The doctor does not accept private insurance, Medicaid, or Medicare. The doctor does not file any insurance claims. Ashley’s doctor probably does not have to follow the HIPAA Privacy Rule because the doctor does not appear to send health information for the types of administrative or financial purposes that would make her a covered health care provider under the Rule.
If you have questions about whether your health care provider must follow the federal HIPAA Privacy Rule, you can contact the Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (OCR), the agency that is in charge of enforcing the HIPAA Privacy Rule. Section 4 of this guide lists contact information for OCR.
What if my health care provider does not have to follow HIPAA?
Even if your provider does not have to follow the HIPAA Privacy Rule, they still have to follow Minnesota laws that give you rights to your medical record. Section 6 lists some resources where you can read these state laws.
This guide, however, only explains how to get your medical record from Minnesota providers who have to follow the HIPAA Privacy Rule and state law.
Are nursing homes covered by HIPAA?
Yes. Most nursing homes are covered by the HIPAA Privacy Rule. They also have to follow other specific rules that only apply to nursing homes and long term care facilities. Because the rules for nursing homes are different than they are for other health care providers, they are not covered by this guide.
What Records Do I Have the Right to Get and Amend?
You have the right to see and get a copy of your medical record. This right often is called the right to access your medical record. You also have the right to correct your medical record by having information added to it to make it more complete or accurate. This right is called the right to amend your record. (This guide will call these rights the "right to get and amend.")
Your medical record includes such things as:
- Information that identifies you, such as your name and Social Security number.
- Information that you tell your doctor, such as:
- Your medical history.
- How you feel at the time of your visit.
- Your family health history.
- The results of your examination.
- Test results.
- Treatment received in a hospital.
- Medicine prescribed.
- Other information about things that can affect your health or health care.
You have the right to see, get a copy of, and amend these records whether they are kept on paper, on a computer, or in other format.
My provider makes personal notes about patients in their medical record. Do I have a right to get these notes?
Probably. You have the right to get a provider’s personal notes about you if the notes are used to make decisions about you or if the information in them is necessary for you to make informed consent about your treatment.
Michael’s doctor writes notes about her personal impressions of patients in their medical records. She uses these notes to help her treat her patients. For example, she wrote a note in Michael’s medical record saying she suspects that he is exaggerating his complaints about his health and that his problems are "all in his head." If Michael requests his entire medical record, the doctor must let him get a copy of this note.
What happens if my medical record has information in it that came from a different health care provider?
Generally, if your provider has the medical information that you request, they must give it to you. You have the right to get the information no matter who originally put it in the record. Your right to amend this information may be limited, though. For more information about how to amend information in your record you can read Section 3 of this guide.
Do I have the right to get and amend records related to substance abuse or mental health treatment?
Maybe. The rules for when you can get and amend your records about mental health and substance abuse treatment can be different. For example, psychotherapy notes are treated differently than other records under HIPAA. Because the rules for mental health and substance abuse records can be different they are not discussed in this guide. You can find some resources that explain your rights in these types of records in Section 6.
Who Has the Right to Get and Amend My Medical Record?
You have the right to see and get a copy of medical records that are about you. You also have the right to have information added to your medical records to make them more accurate or complete. (This guide calls these rights the right to "get and amend" your medical record.) If there is someone who acts as your personal representative, they usually have the right to get and amend your record on your behalf.
Do I have the right to get and amend my minor child’s medical record?
Generally, yes. As a parent or guardian, you generally have the right to get and amend your minor child’s medical record. In Minnesota, you usually have these rights when your child is younger than 18 years old.
As a parent, do I always have the right to get and amend my child’s medical record?
No. A parent does not always have the right to get and amend a minor child’s medical record. For example, if a health care provider reasonably believes that a parent is abusing or neglecting a child, the provider does not have to treat the parent as the child’s personal representative. This means the provider does not have to give the parent access to the child’s medical record.
Some other situations where parents do not have the right to get and amend their child’s medical records are discussed in the following questions and answers.
Who has the right to get and amend my child’s medical record once she turns 18?
Once your child turns 18, your child has the right to see, get a copy of, and amend her own medical record. This includes getting access to records that were created when she was still a minor. After your child turns 18, you usually no longer have the right to get and amend your child’s medical record just because you are her parent.
I am a minor, but I can legally consent to medical treatment. Who can access my medical records?
In Minnesota, as a minor, you can legally consent to medical treatment and services without your parents’ permission if you are living separate and apart from your parents and are managing your personal financial affairs, have been married, or have had a child. In addition you do not need your parents’ permission to consent to medical services to determine or treat:
- Pregnancy
- Venereal disease, and
- Alcohol and drug abuse.
When you consent to such treatment, you have the right to get and amend medical records related to such treatment. Your parents generally do not have the right to get and amend these records. However, your health care provider may inform your parents of any treatment given or needed where, in their judgment, failure to inform your parents would seriously jeopardize your health.
Jason is sexually active and under 18. He consents to be tested for gonorrhea. To Jason's relief, the test is negative and his doctor is not concerned about Jason’s health. Jason's mother later requests a copy of his medical record. Jason's doctor may not give Jason's mother access to his medical information related to his gonorrhea test without Jason's permission.
The rules may be different when you, as a minor, obtain testing or treatment for other medical conditions without parental consent. If you have questions or concerns about whether your parent will have access to your medical information, you should talk to your health care provider.
I am listed as my mother’s agent for making health care decisions on her health care directive. Do I have the right to get her medical records?
Yes. If you are your mother's agent for making health care decisions, you generally have the right to get and correct her medical records during the time when your power to make health care decisions is in effect. Your mother may limit your ability to obtain records in her health care directive.
Maria’s mother signed a health care directive that gives Maria the power to make health care decisions if her mother is unable to make such decisions. The health care directive states that Maria may only have access to such medical records as are necessary to make decisions as her mother's agent. Maria’s mother was in a bad accident and is not able to make decisions about her health care. Maria now has the right to make health care decisions on her mother’s behalf. She also has the right to get her mother’s medical records. For example, Maria has the right to see the records about her mother’s current medical condition and treatment so that she can make decisions as her agent.
Maria is curious about the time her mother had a miscarriage. Maria wants to look at these old medical records. Maria does not have the right to get and amend these old medical records because she does not need them to make decisions about her mother's current treatment.
My father recently died. Do I have the right to get his medical record?
It depends. In Minnesota, you have the right to get a deceased patient's medical records if you are their surviving spouse or parents. You also have the right to get a deceased person’s medical records if you are the personal representative (such as the executor or administrator) of the deceased person's estate.
How Long Does My Provider Have to Keep My Medical Record?
Minnesota law requires some health care providers to keep your medical record for a specific period of time. For example, hospitals must always keep certain parts of your medical record including records dealing with your case history, physical examinations and daily hospital activities. They must keep these records in hard copy for three years after your last visit. After that, they may transfer your record to photographic film.
Hospitals may destroy other parts of your medical record (including miscellaneous documents, papers) after seven years. They do not have to copy these records to photographic film.
Hospitals must keep all parts of a minor's medical records for seven years after the minor turns 18.
You have a right to see, get a copy of, and amend your medical record for as long as your health care provider has it.
