← Mississippi medical records custodian and retention laws

Mississippi — Medical Records Checklist

For a practice that is closing, being sold, relocating or whose physician is retiring. Prepared 21 September 2026.

How long records must be kept

Adult patients: A minimum of 10 years - a CHANGE that takes effect 1 January 2026.
Patients who were minors: No separate minors period stated in this rule.
Clock starts: The date the patient was last treated by a licensee.
Also: The new rule reaches medical records for all new patients, and any patient seen after 1 January 2022.
Also: Imaging and X-rays: 5 years, and longer on written request by the patient.

Before you close — what this state requires

Before destroying ANY patient records, give the patient at least SIX MONTHS notice of the impending destruction (Rule 10.3).
Notify patients in writing of the procedures for release of records where the licensee is NOT the custodian (Rule 10.2/10.4 area)
Records remain the property of the licensee whose facility maintains them
Rule 10.5: may not refuse to transfer records to a treating licensee, and may NOT withhold them over an unpaid bill

Where a records custodian fits

Mississippi law addresses a records custodian directly in the items above. Morgan Records Management performs this role; the duties below are the ones that transfer to, or must be evidenced by, whoever holds the records.

Notify patients in writing of the procedures for release of records where the licensee is NOT the custodian (Rule 10.2/10.4 area)

What you may charge for copies

$20.00 for pages 1-20; $1.00 per page for the next 80; 50 cents per page thereafter.
Plus 10% for postage and handling, and $15.00 for off-site archive retrieval (Miss. Code s.11-1-52).

Where this comes from

30 Miss. Admin. Code Pt. 2635, Rule 10.3 (Board of Medical Licensure)
https://www.msbml.ms.gov/

Read this before you act on it. Every statement above was taken from the state's own published rule or statute and is quoted or closely paraphrased from it. It is a working checklist, not legal advice, and it is a snapshot: retention periods change, and several states adjust their copying fees every year. Confirm the current text with the source listed above, or with your attorney, before you rely on a date or a dollar figure.

Figures stated as of: Reflects the rule effective 1 January 2026. Verified September 2026

Prepared by Morgan Records Management for Mississippi. Checklist built 21 September 2026.