Bill > HR7790

This bill, titled the "Medical Records Access Fairness Act of 2026," amends the HITECH Act, which stands for the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, a law designed to promote the adoption and meaningful use of health information technology. The core provision of this bill is to ensure that individuals can obtain a copy of their protected health information, which refers to any individually identifiable health information held by a covered entity, at no cost. This means that healthcare providers generally cannot charge a fee for providing individuals with their medical records or a summary of them, unless specific exceptions apply. These exceptions include situations where an individual requests a duplicate copy of information already provided within the same calendar year or requests a non-electronic copy when an electronic version is already available for free online. The bill also clarifies that healthcare providers can transmit records to other providers in a readily usable format and explicitly states that this provision does not require providers to offer free copies to an individual's attorney. The Secretary of Health and Human Services is required to issue regulations to implement these changes within six months of the bill's enactment, and these new rules will take effect 180 days after enactment.

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https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7790/all-info