The traditional teaching says that the doctor or medical facility owns the actual record but the patient owns the information contained in it. Even so, a patient cannot just demand the doctor or medical facility hand over the file to them. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPPA) is a federal statute that protects individuals’ medical records and other personal health information. However, it has made it even more difficult for patients as well as their primary care providers to get those records.
Today, most systems provide patients access to information through a web portal. It shows a list of a person’s health conditions in easily understandable terms, lists medications they are currently taking, and includes lab and imaging study results, as well as recommended health measures. Regardless of who owns their medical records, when patients’ health records are readily accessible, they become more aware and engaged and engaged patients are healthier patients.