ARTICLE 4. RULES AND PLEADING.

§56-4-72. Production of medical records in civil actions.

(a) For purposes of this section, “medical records” and “medical billing records” mean documents created, derived or maintained by a health care provider that relate to a patient’s past, present or future physical, mental or behavioral health condition; the provision of health care to a patient; or payment for the provision of health care to a patient.

(b) A party in a civil action requesting or issuing a subpoena for the medical records or medical billing records of another party shall provide to the party whose medical records or medical billing records are sought, or the party’s attorney if he or she is represented by an attorney, a copy of any request or subpoena directed to a health care provider, which copy shall be provided contemporaneously with the request directed to the health care provider.

(c) The party requesting or subpoenaing the medical records or medical billing records shall provide to the party whose medical records or medical billing records are being sought, or to the party’s attorney, a copy of all documents obtained by the requesting party pursuant to the request or subpoena within seven days of receipt of medical records or medical billing records at no cost.

(d) Nothing in this section is intended to alter or modify any other lawful methods of discovery available to a party under the West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure or law including but not limited to the provisions of section six-a, article seven-b, chapter fifty-five of this code.

(e) All medical records and medical billing records obtained pursuant to a request or subpoena or by any other lawful methods of discovery shall be treated as confidential by the party receiving them, its attorneys, experts, consultants, agents and any insurance carrier who may be obligated to pay all or some of any judgment obtained in the litigation.

(f) Medical records and medical billing records obtained by an insurance company in connection with insurance claims or civil litigation shall be confidentially maintained by the insurance company in accordance with state and federal law, including but not limited to the provisions of Title 114, Series 57 of the Code of State Rules.

(g) The Insurance Commissioner shall review the provisions of Title 114, Series 57 of the Code of State Rules and, to the extent necessary, shall propose new rules or modify existing rules to address:

(1) The circumstances under which an insurance company may disclose medical records and medical billing records to other persons or entities;

(2) The circumstances under which personal identifying information of a person must be redacted before that person’s medical records or medical billing records may be disclosed to other persons or entities;

(3) The steps an insurance company is required to undertake before medical records or medical billing records are disclosed to other persons or entities to assure that any person or entity to which an insurance company is disclosing a person’s medical records or medical billing records will be using such records only for purposes permitted by law; and,

(4) The implementation of the requirement that the insurance company has processes or procedures in place to prevent the unauthorized access by its own employees to a person’s confidential medical records or medical billing records.

(h) Nothing in this section is intended to restrict, supersede or enlarge any party’s rights or obligations under rule twenty-six of the West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure, nor limit a party’s right to object to the production of medical records or medical billing records on the grounds that such records are not discoverable in the circumstances of a particular civil action: Provided, That if the court orders the production of disputed records over a party’s objection, the requirements and limitations set forth herein apply.