Medical Records Storage Services

Medical records contain deeply personal information that could leave patients vulnerable to identity theft or other cyber crimes if the information was breached for any reason. Whether you have transitioned to an EHR or you simply have records that have not reached their retention period, medical record storage is a necessary solution to not only free up office space but to also keep your records and each patient safe from bad actors.

Off-site medical records storage professionals specialize in securing old records that are not often needed or accessed rarely while minimizing your storage costs, providing both peace of mind and security from potential lawsuits related to any compromised records. You can also store your backup tapes, external hard drives, and other media along with your paper documents, keeping your data safe in the case of a natural disaster or a data breach.

If your medical practice is closing, you are legally required to hire a custodian for your records to manage any health care requests. Your medical records may be transferred to another physician as the custodian or they can be stored in an off-site facility until the retention time expires. Whoever the custodian is, medical records need to be available at a patient’s request.

How Long Do Hospitals Need to Retain Medical Records?

Every state has laws guiding medical record retention. The length of retention may vary from 5 – 10 years, and private physicians may have different retention  requirements than hospitals. Medical providers must understand and comply with their state laws. In addition, Medicare providers also must abide by federal medical records retention laws.

HIPAA Compliance and Medical Record Storage

Once documents are scanned, your patients’ medical records become digitized. This means that they are considered “electronic protected health information” (ePHI). These records must be safeguarded with AES 256-bit encryption, and all storage providers considered for document preservation must ensure HIPAA-compliant safeguards are in place. This includes audit logs that show who has access to data and when they accessed data. In addition, all individuals with access to PHI must provide credentials and adhere to authentication processes and protocols.

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) requires that medical providers retain the confidentiality, availability and integrity of all health information, keep PHI protected against reasonable threats (like hackers), and protect all data “…against reasonably anticipated, impermissible uses or disclosures.” Crucially, medical offices, private practices, hospitals, and other medical institutions hold the responsibility of ensuring compliance for all employees. Regulated entities are required to oversee any data transfers and they must implement safeguard policies and procedures for workstations.