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Resolved Medical Records

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GerardS_36106

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I work for a SNF for billing/coding/ and medical records in Michigan, I was looking for some feed back if anyone knew if there is any sort of regulations federal or state that states the facility must maintain a paper chart and an EHR OR is just the EHR is enough. At this point we are maintain both and I find it defeats the point of the EHR. Any help would be great, my research has been inconclusive .
 
From what I read of Michigan law (and Hello! - I was born and raised a 'gander) I read the article as you do not have to keep the records if you are putting them in an electronic format.
The part I read this from says: The records shall be maintained in such a manner as to protect their integrity, to ensure their confidentiality and proper use, and to ensure their accessibility and availability to each patient or his or her authorized representative as required by law.
http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(wd....aspx?page=getobject&objectName=mcl-333-16213 EHR records are confidential and protect the integrity of the patient as long as they meet the privacy and security components of HIPAA laws. Just ensure there are security protocols in place.
As far as destroying the paper copy, I read the law to imply a notice should be sent to the patients who have a paper copy letting them know their paper copy will be destroyed (shredded or incinerated) and only an electronic format will be available. As long as ALL of the paper records can be found in the EHR system, they can be destroyed. But if the paper files predate the EHR, those should be scanned into the EHR system if the patient is still active if it is under 7 years.
 
From what I read of Michigan law (and Hello! - I was born and raised a 'gander) I read the article as you do not have to keep the records if you are putting them in an electronic format.
The part I read this from says: The records shall be maintained in such a manner as to protect their integrity, to ensure their confidentiality and proper use, and to ensure their accessibility and availability to each patient or his or her authorized representative as required by law.
http://www.legislature.mi.gov/(S(wd....aspx?page=getobject&objectName=mcl-333-16213 EHR records are confidential and protect the integrity of the patient as long as they meet the privacy and security components of HIPAA laws. Just ensure there are security protocols in place.
As far as destroying the paper copy, I read the law to imply a notice should be sent to the patients who have a paper copy letting them know their paper copy will be destroyed (shredded or incinerated) and only an electronic format will be available. As long as ALL of the paper records can be found in the EHR system, they can be destroyed. But if the paper files predate the EHR, those should be scanned into the EHR system if the patient is still active if it is under 7 years.
Thank you for clarity, I read this article too and wasn't sure of the interpretation
 
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