Statutory Interpretation – Patient Health Care Records Access

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WI Court of Appeals – District IV

Case Name: Beatriz Banuelos v. University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics Authority

Case No.: 2020AP1582

Officials: Blanchard, P.J., Kloppenburg, and Nashold, JJ.

Focus: Statutory Interpretation – Patient Health Care Records Access

Beatriz Banuelos appeals the circuit court’s dismissal of her complaint alleging that the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics Authority (UW Health) unlawfully charged her fees for providing, at her request, electronic copies of her patient health care records. The parties agree that whether the court properly dismissed the complaint depends solely on the interpretation of WIS. STAT. § 146.83(3f) (2019-20), which governs the fees that health care providers are allowed to charge for fulfilling requests to provide copies of patient health care records. We conclude that the pertinent statutory language permits a health care provider to charge for providing requested copies of patient health care records only those fees enumerated in § 146.83(3f) that apply to the request. We conclude that the fees that UW Health charged Banuelos are unlawful under § 146.83(3f) because she requested and received copies in an electronic format and there are no statutorily enumerated fees for electronic copies. Accordingly, we reverse the court’s order dismissing Banuelos’s complaint and remand for further proceedings.

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Derek A Hawkins is Corporate Counsel, at Salesforce.