Custodian Of Medical Records Laws in Massachusetts

Massachusetts

Medical Records Custodian & Retention Laws

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Massachusetts Medical Record Retention Law:
Board of Registration in Medicine, Medical Records Obligations

Adult patients: A minimum of 7 years.
Patients who were minors: Either 7 years from the last patient encounter or until the patient reaches 18, whichever is the LONGER period.
The retention period runs from: The date of the last patient encounter.
A retiring physician OR THE PHYSICIAN'S SUCCESSOR must maintain the records for the same 7 years.

If you are closing, selling or relocating your practice
Massachusetts sets out what has to happen to patient records. The points below are taken from the source above.

THE CLOSURE DUTY IS ONE SENTENCE AND IT NAMES THE SUCCESSOR: 'A RETIRING PHYSICIAN OR HIS SUCCESSOR must maintain patient records for seven years from the date of the last patient encounter.' Massachusetts puts the retention duty on the custodian directly - retiring does not end it, and handing the records to a custodian does not end it either - it transfers it.
No advance patient-notice period, newspaper notice or board notification was located on the Board's page - so unlike New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Wyoming or Kansas, Massachusetts sets no closure NOTICE mechanics. Say that rather than implying a duty that is not there.
Physicians must turn patient records over to the Board on request (G.L. c. 112 s.5), with no patient authorisation needed and no liability for doing so - a duty a custodian has to be able to satisfy years later.

Massachusetts closing-practice checklist
The same requirements as a checklist you can print and work through, with the retention periods, the notice each rule requires and what you may charge for copies.
Open the Massachusetts checklist →

Cost

For physicians not covered by HIPAA: a base fee of $15.00 per request, 50 cents per page for the first 100 pages and 25 cents per page beyond 100, adjustable by CPI.
No fee at all where the request supports a Social Security Act claim or a needs-based benefit program.
Records may not be withheld over an unpaid medical bill, though copying costs may be required up front.
Turnaround: HIPAA allows 30 days (60 if off-site), extendable once by 30 with written reasons. For physicians outside HIPAA the Board reads 'timely manner' as two to three weeks.

The Board's page is revised 02 April 2012; treat fee figures as CPI-adjustable. Verified September 2026

Also referred to above
G.L. c. 112 s.12CC and 243 CMR 2.07(13)

This page summarises the source above and is not legal advice. Retention periods change and several states adjust their copying fees every year, so confirm the current text before you rely on a date or a figure.