Can You Sue a Doctor for Losing Your Medical Records?

When you visit a doctor, you trust that your sensitive health information will be handled with care and stored securely. 

Your medical records contain everything from your personal identification and insurance information to details about diagnoses, medications, surgeries, and mental health history. 

So what happens when that trust is broken, when your doctor loses your medical records or exposes them to unauthorized access? Can you sue?

At Morgan & Morgan, we believe your health privacy matters. If your doctor’s negligence caused your medical records to be lost, mishandled, or shared without your consent, you may be entitled to compensation. 

To learn more about your rights and legal options, contact us today for a free case evaluation.

What Are Medical Records? What Do They Include?

Medical records are official documents that detail a patient’s medical history and care. They are used by healthcare providers to diagnose conditions, prescribe treatments, and monitor progress. These records include:

• Demographics (name, age, address, etc.)
• Medical history (illnesses, allergies, surgeries)
• Lab results and imaging
• Prescriptions
• Progress notes
• Mental health evaluations
• Insurance information

Because these records are so comprehensive and sensitive, doctors and healthcare providers are legally and ethically required to protect them under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

How to Get Your Medical Records 

According to the Health insurance Portability and Accounting Act (HIPAA), obtaining your medical records such as test results and doctor’s notes is your legal right. Normally, patients can get copies of their medical records by filling out a request form at their primary care office or writing a letter requesting the documents. Those generally entitled to request medical records include:

• Patients
• Parents or guardians of a patient
• Doctors
• Hospitals
• Rehabilitation centers
• Labs
• Healthcare powers of attorney

Others who may be entitled access to a patient’s medical records include nursing homes, insurance companies, and billing providers.

Your medical records may be shared among several medical providers and other entities, such as your primary doctor, a hospital, or an insurance provider. Therefore, you could potentially obtain your copies from these sources when your doctor has destroyed or lost the records. Moreover, if you are looking for particular test results, you could directly request them from a lab, imaging center, or hospital. 

Why Are Lost Medical Records a Big Deal?

This isn’t a simple clerical error. Losing a patient’s medical records can have serious consequences, including:

Delayed or Inappropriate Medical Treatment

When doctors don't have access to accurate and complete records, they might miss vital information that influences your care. For example, if an allergy or a prior condition isn’t documented, a doctor might prescribe medication that causes harm.

Medical Identity Theft

If lost records fall into the wrong hands, they can be used to fraudulently obtain medical services or prescription drugs in your name. Victims may not even know it’s happening until they receive bills for services they never received.

Emotional Distress

For many patients, knowing that their private information has been lost or exposed is emotionally distressing, especially when records include sensitive data about mental health, reproductive history, or infectious diseases.

Legal and Financial Complications

Missing medical records can also complicate workers’ comp claims, disability applications, personal injury lawsuits, or any situation where your medical history is needed to prove damages.

Is It illegal for a Doctor to Lose My Medical Records?

Losing medical records due to negligence may not be criminal, but it can be a violation of HIPAA, and may entitle you to civil compensation.

Can You Legally Sue a Doctor for Losing Medical Records?

Yes, in some cases you can sue a doctor for losing your medical records or the medical records of a loved one.

If your doctor or healthcare provider was negligent in maintaining, storing, or securing your medical records and you suffered harm as a result, you may have grounds for legal action. 

Here’s how.

The Legal Theories Behind a Claim

There are several legal pathways a lawsuit might follow, depending on the facts of the case:

Negligence

Doctors and medical providers owe you a duty of care. If they breach that duty by failing to follow proper protocols for securing or storing your records, and that breach causes harm, they may be liable for negligence.

For example, a clinic improperly trains staff on digital health records, leading to a patient’s file being deleted before a major surgery. The patient suffers complications because the new surgeon didn’t know their history.

Medical Malpractice

If the loss of records results in a substandard level of care, you may be able to sue under a malpractice theory.

For instance, a patient’s imaging results are misplaced, and the delay causes a cancer diagnosis to be missed until it reaches a later stage. This could be grounds for a malpractice suit.

HIPAA Violations

While HIPAA itself doesn’t allow patients to sue directly, a breach of HIPAA rules can serve as evidence of negligence in a civil case. You can also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), which may investigate and penalize the provider.

Breach of Confidentiality

Even if no medical harm occurred, you may be able to sue for emotional damages or reputational harm if your private records were exposed to unauthorized parties.

What Do You Need to Prove?

To win a lawsuit against a doctor or medical facility for lost records, your legal team typically must show:

• Duty of Care: The provider had a legal obligation to protect your records.
• Breach of Duty: They failed to meet that obligation through poor training, outdated systems, or carelessness.
• Causation: The breach directly caused you harm (e.g., worsened condition, identity theft, emotional distress).
• Damages: You suffered real, quantifiable losses (financial, physical, or emotional).

At Morgan & Morgan, our attorneys will help you gather evidence to build a strong case, including internal policies, HIPAA compliance logs, audit trails, and expert medical testimony.

What Damages Can You Recover?

If your lawsuit is successful, you may be entitled to compensation for:

• Medical Expenses resulting from delayed or incorrect care
• Lost Wages if you had to miss work due to resulting health issues
• Pain and Suffering
• Mental Anguish or emotional distress
• Costs of Identity Restoration (if your records were stolen)
• Reputational Harm (in cases of public disclosure of private facts)

In some cases, punitive damages may be awarded to punish especially reckless behavior, such as ignoring multiple warnings about insecure systems.

What Should You Do If Your Records Are Lost?

If you believe your medical records have been lost, mishandled, or exposed:

1. Ask for an Explanation: Contact the doctor’s office or medical facility and request a full accounting of what happened.
2. Request Copies of Any Remaining Records: Even partial records can be helpful for continuity of care and future legal actions.
3. File a Complaint with HHS: Visit HHS.gov to file a HIPAA complaint. They may investigate and impose fines or sanctions.
4. Monitor Your Credit and Medical Records: Use credit monitoring services and request your Medical Identity Theft report through the Medical Information Bureau (MIB).
5. Speak With a Lawyer: An experienced attorney at Morgan & Morgan can help determine if you have a valid claim and what your next steps should be.
   
    

Can I Still Get Treatment Without My Medical Records?

Yes, but it can be riskier. Doctors may have to rely on your memory or guesswork, which can result in inappropriate care.

How Morgan & Morgan Can Help

At Morgan & Morgan, we understand the emotional and physical toll a lost medical record can have. With more than 1,000 lawyers nationwide, we’ve helped millions of clients fight for justice when powerful institutions let them down. We’re not afraid to take on hospitals, clinics, or individual doctors if their negligence harmed you.

Our attorneys can conduct a full investigation into how your records were lost and help determine whether malpractice or negligence occurred. In the event of negligence or malpractice, we can calculate your total damages and negotiate or litigate aggressively on your behalf.

Keeping your medical records secure is important to your health and your privacy. When a doctor or healthcare provider loses or mishandles that information, it can affect not just your treatment, but your financial well-being, peace of mind, and trust in the system.

At Morgan & Morgan, we believe no one should suffer because of careless recordkeeping or poor data security. If your medical records were lost or exposed, contact us today for a free, confidential case evaluation.