SUBCHAPTER E
MEDICAL RECORDS
Sec.
6151. Use of certified copies.
6152. Subpoena of records.
6152.1. Limit on charges.
6153. Receipts.
6154. Affidavit of none or partial possession.
6155. Rights of patients.
6156. Opening of sealed envelopes.
6157. Retention of records.
6158. Obtaining personal attendance of custodian.
6159. Obtaining production of original record.
6160. Definitions.
Enactment. Subchapter E was added November 28, 1986, P.L.1458, No.145, effective in 60 days.
Cross References. Subchapter E is referred to in section 6152 of this title.
§ 6151. Use of certified copies.
Medical charts or records of any health care facility licensed under the laws of this
Commonwealth that are susceptible to photostatic reproduction may be proved as to
foundation, identity and authenticity without any preliminary testimony, by use of
legible and durable copies, certified in the manner provided in this subchapter by
the employee of the health care facility charged with the responsibility of being
custodian of the originals thereof. These copies may be used in any trial, hearing,
deposition or other judicial or administrative action or proceeding, whether civil
or criminal, in lieu of the original charts or records which, however, the health
care facility shall hold available during the pendency of the action or proceeding
for inspection and comparison by the court, tribunal or hearing officer and by the
parties and their attorneys of record. This subchapter does not apply to an X-ray
film or any other portion of a medical record which is not susceptible to photostatic
reproduction.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
7
cases (
1 in the last 5 years), 1995–2024 · leading case:
Commonwealth v. McMaster, 666 A.2d 724 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1995).
Commonwealth v. McMaster, 666 A.2d 724 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1995).
· cites it 7× “The copies of these records were offered by the defense pursuant to 42 Pa.C.S. § 6151, which provides as follows: § 6151.”
Liss & Marion, P.C. v. Recordex Acquisition Corp., 983 A.2d 652 (Pa. 2009).
· cites it 2× “42 Pa.C.S. §§ 6151— 6160. Known as the Medical Records Act (MRA), the enactment streamlines the records request process and caps the prices that medical care providers or their designated agents can charge for copying.”
W.L. Ives v. BPOA, State Bd. of Med., 204 A.3d 564 (Pa. Commw. Ct. 2019).
· cites it 2× “42 Pa. C.S. § 6151 (emphasis added). For a record to be "certified" requires the custodian of the records to sign a certification before a notary public.”
Com. v. McCullough, M., 324 A.3d 582, 2024 PA Super 221 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2024).
· cites it 2× “The use of medical records at trial is governed by 42 Pa.C.S. § 6151, which provides: [m]edical charts or records of any health care facility licensed under the laws of this Commonwealth that are susceptible to photostatic reproduction may be proved as to foundation, identity…”
S. Williams v. PA DOC, No. 2068 C.D. 2015 (Pa. Commw. Ct. June 13, 2016).
“3 42 Pa.C.S. §§ 6151–6160. On July 27, 2015, Williams filed a Request with DOC seeking handwritten “medical consultations from outside appointments” for an SCI–Fayette inmate.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.