FAQ 2058 Does an individual have a right under HIPAA to access his PHI in a particular technical standard?
This FAQ answers if individuals have a right under HIPAA to access their PHI in a particular technical standard.
Final
Issued by: Office for Civil Rights (OCR)
Does an individual have a right under HIPAA to access his PHI in a particular technical standard?
In some circumstances, an individual may request access to an electronic copy of his PHI in a particular technical standard – for example, a copy of the individual’s medication data represented in RxNorm or a lab test represented in LOINC. An individual may request PHI in a particular standard in order to use that information in other software the individual is using. If the covered entity is able to readily produce the PHI in the requested standard format, the covered entity must do so (unless the entity has a ground for denial as specified in the Privacy Rule at 45 CFR 164.524(a). (We note that individuals, in exercising their rights of access under the Privacy Rule, are not required to state their purpose for requesting access, regardless of whether or not a particular form or format for the request is specified, and an individual’s rationale for requesting access is not a reason to deny access.)
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