Telemedicine Medical Records: Compliance & Access for Legal Teams

17 Jun Telemedicine Medical Records: Compliance & Access for Legal Teams

More than 30% of US adults use telemedicine services every year. This trend is fueled by the convenience these services offer, allowing patients to connect with healthcare providers and professionals from the comfort of their homes.

Despite its benefits, telemedicine creates new challenges in medical records handling and management, especially for legal and insurance teams seeking access. Often, these teams have to grapple with outdated and siloed systems that limit access to crucial records. Also, retrieving telehealth data can be difficult when dealing with providers who are not yet using interoperable electronic health record (EHR) systems. Some providers lack procedures for verifying remote patient encounters and consents, leading to case delays and potentially risking violations.

The good news is you don’t need to contend with such challenges—working with medical record retrieval services frees up legal and insurance teams, allowing them to focus on casework, strategy, and client support.

Below, we’ll explore how working with a medical record retrieval partner can streamline the process of accessing and managing telemedicine medical records so that your team can take advantage.

The Rise of Telemedicine and What It Means for Legal Records

More doctors are reporting an increasing number of patients through telehealth due to its accessibility, affordability, and convenience. Medical specialists record the highest usage, with more than 20% using telemedicine for over 50% of their patient visits.

As this technology witnesses an increased adoption, the risks of poor records management and unauthorized access also increase. Telemedicine introduces complexities that impact the creation, storage, and accessibility of medical records. For instance, practitioners offering services across states or national borders must comply with different requirements.

This doesn’t just affect healthcare providers; it also impacts their business associates, like lawyers and insurers, exposing them to regulatory and compliance issues. Incomplete or fragmented records lead to case delays and impact the merit of cases, potentially resulting in reputational damage.

Like an in-person visit, virtual visits generate multiple medical records, including patient notes, diagnoses, medical history, medications, photos, videos, consent forms, and communication logs. The difference lies in the format and accountability of the records, with virtual visits relying on EHR systems for record-keeping and sharing.

Despite the challenges, telemedicine presents an opportunity for stakeholders to improve their policies, systems, and procedures to ensure effective medical record handling and management. For example, providers and their associates can leverage integrations and interoperable systems to consolidate patient records and streamline access.

Legal and Insurance Use Cases for Telemedicine Records

During legal and insurance cases, telemedicine records are important in proving liability and malpractice. With these records, legal and insurance teams can thoroughly investigate the credibility of claims and provide an invaluable account of the patient’s journey or experiences.

Lawyers and claim adjusters can use these records in a variety of different cases, including:

• Personal injury or malpractice claims involving telehealth – The records can help parties review the decisions made by practitioners based on the information available at the time. They can be used to show that the provided medical advice or instructions were followed during negligence claims.
• Medical treatment or condition verification — Telehealth records can also be used to demonstrate evidence of condition or treatment. Videos, photos, and screenshots captured during the virtual visit can be useful in these cases.
• Disability claims requiring virtual diagnosis documentation – Virtual diagnoses document evidence of disability as presented by the claimant and how the condition impacts their life or the ability to complete gainful activities like work.
• Investigating treatment adequacy and standard of care remotely – Telemedicine records show all activities that occurred during the virtual visit through notes, treatment decisions, medication prescriptions, and more. These records help to gauge the quality of patient care.
• Informed consent and unauthorized access — Documentation of informed consent can be useful in refuting claims of unauthorized access or violations against HIPAA and other privacy laws.

Telemedicine records are far from simple documentation of care, as they play a pivotal role in legal proceedings, compliance audits, insurance claims, and risk management. They can also be used to identify trends and analyze patient outcomes, especially when the claimant used remote patient monitoring (RPM) services.

To ensure admissibility in court, the records must be captured, stored, and accessed as per the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) guidelines. This means that insurance and legal teams using these records must track access, ensuring that only authorized colleagues have access to the documents.

Telemedicine Documentation Challenges

Like in-person visits, all virtual care visits require accurate documentation to keep track of patient records and improve care over time. However, telemedicine presents varied challenges that can impact the quality and completeness of medical records. Examples include:

• Inconsistent recordkeeping across providers or platforms — Providers and platforms use different tools and technologies, and this can lead to fragmented records and varying data formats. Lack of system integrations exacerbates this issue further.
• Missing consent forms, imaging, or treatment notes — Virtual care records may miss crucial information like consent forms, images, test results, and notes. This can be due to inconsistent data formats or the inability to capture some of the details online.
• Difficulty retrieving telehealth data in usable formats — Different platforms have varying coding practices, which impact the data formats of medical records. This makes it challenging to retrieve and compare data across multiple platforms.
• Patient privacy and data security issues — Electronic and digital systems are prone to data breaches and hacking, raising concerns about data security and privacy. Such events can lead to data loss or corrupted files, impacting the completeness of records.

The primary driver behind these challenges is the lack of interoperability between EHR systems. Additionally, factors like slow internet speeds and poor technology skills among patients and providers can widen the documentation gap, impacting access to quality medical records.

Ensuring HIPAA Compliance with Telehealth Record Handling

Fortunately, stakeholders can implement measures to improve telehealth record handling and management, thereby improving accuracy and completeness. Beyond the technical setups, legal and insurance teams must also understand the HIPAA telemedicine guidelines and how they impact telehealth record handling.

For instance, HIPAA mandates that covered entities:

• Implement verification procedures for first contacts during access requests
• Identify and analyze risks to the privacy of personal health information in electronic transmissions
• Develop procedures for recording patient consent, especially when there’s a risk to the patient’s privacy and record confidentiality
• Record and retain all remote patient encounters to comply with regulatory rules
• Ensure compliant business associate agreements (BAAs) with all associates and software vendors

Additionally, insurers and lawyers with access to the medical records must ensure secure transfer methods and proper storage protocols. This includes encrypting data and using HIPAA- and PCI-compliant platforms and servers.

Finally, teams must adhere to the legal standards for accessing and submitting digital records, such as obtaining valid patient authorization, maintaining data security and integrity, and following proper record request procedures. Failure to adhere to HIPAA guidelines can attract fines of up to $25,000 per violation.

How a Medical Record Retrieval Partner Streamlines Access

Retrieving telemedicine records for legal and insurance cases can be a lengthy process. While HIPAA mandates that providers respond to access requests within 30 days, this isn’t a guarantee of timely delivery. Lawyers and insurers often have to wait months to access records and data.

One way to avoid these delays and frustrations is by working with a medical record retrieval company for lawyers and insurers to access and secure vital medical records faster and more efficiently. How?

A retrieval partner:

• Delivers records in structured, case-ready formats to support case preparations
• Provides secure systems for sharing records with colleagues to ensure accountability
• Supports HIPAA compliance and reduces administrative burden on legal teams
• Offers advanced annotation tools for improved record reviews and organization

These services simplify the work of legal and insurance teams, saving them significant time in tracking down telemedicine records or creating chronologies. Instead, lawyers and insurers can focus on developing strategies for winning cases and resolving claims—in turn delivering unparalleled service to their clients.

Medical record retrieval services can take care of your mundane tasks like sending letters to facilities, scheduling follow-ups, tracking responses, and processing and organizing records. Their role is even more important when handling complex cases with longer litigation processes or multiple claimants.

Telemedicine Records Require a Modern Approach

Telemedicine has vastly improved access to healthcare services, making it possible for patients to easily connect with medical providers regardless of their location. But for medical providers and their business associates, this technology comes with additional challenges, such as complex medical record handling and management requirements.

Given the value of telemedicine medical record retrieval for insurance companies and law firms, stakeholders must implement effective digital healthcare documentation strategies. Teams must create policies that align with HIPAA rules to capture telehealth activities and ensure easy, secure access through integrations.

However, lawyers and insurers continue to struggle to access these records. Some even spend months tracking down records or waiting for deliveries. 

Avoid these costly delays and time-consuming tasks by hiring a medical record retrieval partner, like American Retrieval. As a national leader in medical record retrieval solutions, we offer the fastest service, the best rates, and unmatched technology to streamline your workflow and save you time and money. 

Partner with American Retrieval for fast, compliant telehealth records.

Sources:

CDC. Telemedicine Use Among Adults: United States, 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db445.htm

PMC. The State of Telehealth Before and After the COVID-19 Pandemic. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9035352/

CDC. Telemedicine Use Among Physicians by Physician Specialty: United States, 2021. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/databriefs/db493.htmThe HIPAA Journal. What are the Penalties for HIPAA Violations? https://www.hipaajournal.com/what-are-the-penalties-for-hipaa-violations-7096/