Industry News

Law Requiring Patient Access to Records

The federal government’s new rule on “Interoperability and Information Blocking” (21st Century Cures Act) requires doctors to give patients access to their notes and takes effect April 5, 2021. According to the AMA, “information blocking” is defined as any activity designed to interfere with access, exchange, or use of electronic health information. The new federal rule defines the failure to share the following eight types of notes with patients as information blocking: consultation notes; discharge summary notes; history & physical; imaging narratives; laboratory report narratives; pathology report narratives; procedure notes; and, progress notes.