Doubts about the Necessity to Obtain the Patient's Consent to Provide the Insurer with Medical Records in Medical Damage

Abstract

The article discusses the issue of providing the patient's medical records to the insurance company by an entity performing medical services in the event of the injured party making a claim to remedy damage resulting from the performance of medical services (so-called medical damage). This article focuses on whether it is necessary or not to obtain the consent of a patient. As the circulation of documentation concerning damage has been regulated both in the provisions relating to the loss adjustment procedures and in legislation on medical activity, and given that in the case concerned damage documentation comprises medical records, it is necessary to discuss the effects of the collision of those two legal regimes for providing an insurance undertaking with access to said documents. It is particularly worth considering whether the provisions of the Insurance and Reinsurance Activity Act in connection with the provisions of the Compulsory Insurance Act constitute an independent basis for making available to the insurer health records necessary for loss adjustment, or whether such a disclosure should be preceded by obtaining the injured party’s consent.