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Committee narrows fees and requires electronic production for medical records in legal proceedings (SB359)
Summary
SB359 extends a long-standing statutory fee structure for medical records to all requesters, requires electronic production when records are stored electronically, and retains per‑page and labor charge limits; the committee approved the bill by voice vote.
Sponsor and counsel explained that SB359 updates how medical records are provided and billed in legal proceedings. The bill applies an existing reasonable-fee statute — long used to limit per-page and labor charges for claimants — equally to other parties (for example, insurers or entities handling claims). Counsel told the committee that many providers outsource retrieval to third-party vendors that historically charged high fees; SB359 constrains those charges and requires electronic production when records are maintained in electronic form, while preserving privacy protections.
Specific fee mechanics discussed in committee included a per‑page cap for photocopies (no more than $0.50 a page, with initial pages at a reduced rate) and a $15 labor charge for each request; a production charge was discussed in the transcript as capped at $20 for production. Committee members confirmed that the bill does not remove the need for proper authorizations to obtain medical records.
The committee passed SB359 by voice vote after brief technical clarification from counsel. Proponents said the measure levels billing practices for requesters and modernizes statutory language to reflect electronic records.
