New U.S. Law Mandates Access to Clinical Notes: Implications for Patients and Clinicians
Authors: Charlotte Blease, Jan Walker, Catherine M. DesRoches, Tom Delbanco
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2020)

Ideas and OpinionsJanuary 2021New U.S. Law Mandates Access to Clinical Notes: Implications for Patients and CliniciansCharlotte Blease, PhD, Jan Walker, RN, MBA, Catherine M. DesRoches, DrPh, and Tom Delbanco, MDCharlotte Blease, PhDBeth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts (C.B.), Jan Walker, RN, MBABeth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (J.W., C.M.D., T.D.), Catherine M. DesRoches, DrPhBeth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (J.W., C.M.D., T.D.), and Tom Delbanco, MDBeth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (J.W., C.M.D., T.D.)Author, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M20-5370 Annals Author Insight Video - Charlotte Blease, PhD In this video, Charlotte Blease, PhD, offers additional insight into the article, "New U.S. Law Mandates Access to Clinical Notes: Implications for Patients and Clinicians." (Duration 3:27) SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail On 2 November 2020, new federal rules will implement the bipartisan 21st Century Cures Act that, in part, ". . . promotes patient access to their electronic health information, supports provider needs, advances innovation, and addresses industry-wide information blocking practices" (1). The rules forbid health care organizations, information technology vendors, and others from restricting patients' access to their electronic health care data, or "information blocking" (Table). Although the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act gave patients the legal right to review their medical records, the new ruling goes further by giving them the right to access their electronic health records rapidly and conveniently ...References1. Sweeney Anthony E. The Cures Act Final Rule: interoperability-focused policies that empower patients and support providers. HealthITBuzz Blog. 9 March 2020. Accessed at www.healthit.gov/buzz-blog/21st-century-cures-act/the-cures-final-rule on 14 September 2020. Google Scholar2. Walker J, Leveille S, Bell S, et al. OpenNotes after 7 years: patient experiences with ongoing access to their clinicians' outpatient visit notes. J Med Internet Res. 2019;21:e13876. [PMID: 31066717] doi:10.2196/13876 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. DesRoches CM, Bell SK, Dong Z, et al. Patients managing medications and reading their visit notes: a survey of OpenNotes participants [Letter]. Ann Intern Med. 2019;171:69-71. doi:10.7326/M18-3197 LinkGoogle Scholar4. Blease C, Fernandez L, Bell SK, et al. Empowering patients and reducing inequities: is there potential in sharing clinical notes? BMJ Qual Saf. 2020;29:864-8. [PMID: 32188711] doi:10.1136/bmjqs-2019-010490 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. DesRoches CM, Leveille S, Bell SK, et al. The views and experiences of clinicians sharing medical record notes with patients. JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3:e201753. [PMID: 32219406] doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.1753 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar6. Bell SK, Delbanco T, Elmore JG, et al. Frequency and types of patient-reported errors in electronic health record ambulatory care notes. JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3:e205867. [PMID: 32515797] doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.5867 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar7. Blease CR, O'Neill S, Walker J, et al. Sharing notes with mental health patients: balancing risks with respect. Lancet Psychiatry. 2020. [PMID: 32059796] doi:10.1016/S2215-0366(20)30032-8 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar8. Kriegel G, Bell S, Delbanco T, et al. Covid-19 as innovation accelerator: cogenerating telemedicine visit notes with patients. NEJM Catal Innov Care Deliv. 12 May 2020. doi:10.1056/CAT.20.0154 CrossrefGoogle Scholar9. Gantzer HE, Block BL, Hobgood LC, et al. Restoring the story and creating a valuable clinical note [Editorial]. Ann Intern Med. 2020;173:380-382. doi:10.7326/M20-0934 LinkGoogle Scholar10. Mann DM, Chen J, Chunara R, et al. COVID-19 transforms health care through telemedicine: evidence from the field. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2020;27:1132-1135. [PMID: 32324855] doi:10.1093/jamia/ocaa072 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts (C.B.)Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (J.W., C.M.D., T.D.)Financial Support: Dr. Blease is a John F. Keane & Family Visiting Scholar at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Ms. Walker, Dr. DesRoches, and Dr. Delbanco receive financial support from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Cambia Health Foundation, and Commonwealth Fund of New York. The funders had no role in designing or preparing the manuscript or in deciding to submit it for publication.Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M20-5370.Corresponding Author: Charlotte Blease, PhD, Division of General Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 133 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215; e-mail, [email protected]harvard.edu.Current Author Addresses: Dr. Blease: Division of General Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 133 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215.Ms. Walker: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 133 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215.Dr. DesRoches: Harvard Medical School, 133 Brookline Avenue, 2nd Floor Annex, Boston, MA 02215.Dr. Delbanco: Division of General Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 133 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215.Author Contributions: Conception and design: T.L. Delbanco.Analysis and interpretation of the data: T.L. Delbanco, C.M. DesRoches.Drafting of the article: C.R. Blease, T.L. Delbanco, C.M. DesRoches.Critical revision for important intellectual content: T.L. Delbanco, C.M. DesRoches, J. Walker.Final approval of the article: C.R. Blease, T.L. Delbanco, C.M. DesRoches, J. Walker.Obtaining of funding: T.L. Delbanco, C.M. DesRoches.Administrative, technical, or logistic support: T.L. Delbanco.Collection and assembly of data: T.L. Delbanco, C.M. DesRoches.This article was published at Annals.org on 13 October 2020. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement Annals Author Insight Video - Charlotte Blease, PhD In this video, Charlotte Blease, PhD, offers additional insight into the article, "New U.S. Law Mandates Access to Clinical Notes: Implications for Patients and Clinicians." (Duration 3:27) FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoWhen Patients Read Their Story in Clinical Notes Heather E. 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Gantzer, MDEthical issues when non-paternity is an incidental findingPreparing Patients and Clinicians for Open Notes in Mental Health: Qualitative Inquiry of International ExpertsSharing Clinical Notes and Electronic Health Records With People Affected by Mental Health Conditions: Scoping Review January 2021Volume 174, Issue 1Page: 101-102KeywordsDisclosureElectronic medical recordsHealth careHealth information technologyHealth surveysInternetPatient advocacyPatientsPopulation statisticsTelemedicine ePublished: 13 October 2020 Issue Published: January 2021 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2020 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...