Florida Medical Records Request Rules for Practices (2026)

Florida requires practitioners to furnish copies "in a timely manner, without delays for legal review," and lets each licensing board set copy fees by rule. For physicians and chiropractors, that means $1.00 per page for the first 25 pages and $0.25 after that for patients, and up to $1.00 per page for other requesters. Records generally go to anyone else, including an attorney, only with the patient's written authorization or a subpoena with proper notice to the patient.

At a glance

Question	Answer
Deadline for a patient's request	"In a timely manner, without delays for legal review." The statute gives no number of days. The osteopathic board defines timely as less than 30 days. For other practices, HIPAA's 30-day limit applies.
Copy fees a practice can charge	Set by board rule. Physicians and chiropractors: for patients and government agencies, $1.00 per page for pages 1 to 25 and $0.25 per page after that; for other requesters, up to $1.00 per page. Physical therapists: $1.00 and then $0.25 per page for any requester. X-rays: actual cost.
Requests from the patient's attorney	Needs the patient's written authorization. Under the physician and chiropractic rules, the "other entities" rate of up to $1.00 per page applies.
Subpoenas	Records may be released without authorization on a subpoena from a court of competent jurisdiction with proper notice to the patient by the party seeking the records. Rule 1.351 sets a 10-day notice period to the other parties before a records-only subpoena can be issued.
Records that need extra consent	HIV test results (a general release is not enough), genetic test results (express consent), and records of licensed substance abuse service providers. For psychiatric and psychotherapy records, a practitioner may give the patient a report instead of copies.
How long to keep records	Physicians: at least 5 years from the last patient contact. Chiropractors: at least 4 years from the last appointment. Physical therapists: no active-practice minimum in the board rule; 2 years after closing or relocating.
Recent changes (2023–2026)	2023: new rules on medical-expense evidence and letters of protection in injury cases (section 768.0427). 2023: chiropractic retention rule amended. 2026: records requested by the Department of Children and Families must be furnished within 14 days.

When the patient asks

Section 456.057(6) of the Florida Statutes covers every practitioner licensed by the Department of Health or one of its boards. On request of the patient or the patient's legal representative, the practitioner must furnish copies of all reports and records of the examination or treatment, "including X rays and insurance information." The copies must be provided "in a timely manner, without delays for legal review." The practice cannot hold the copies until the patient pays a bill for services.

The statute does not give a number of days. The Board of Osteopathic Medicine's rule says timely means less than 30 days, unless circumstances are beyond the physician's control. The physician, chiropractic and physical therapy rules we read do not set a day count, so HIPAA's 30-day limit is the outer deadline for those practices.

Fees come from section 456.057(17): no more than the actual cost of copying, including reasonable staff time, or the amount set by the board's rule. The board rules set these amounts:

Physicians (Rule 64B8-10.003) and chiropractors (Rule 64B2-17.0055): for patients and government agencies, up to $1.00 per page for the first 25 pages and $0.25 for each page after that. For other requesters, up to $1.00 per page.
Physical therapists (Rule 64B17-6.005): up to $1.00 per page for the first 25 pages and $0.25 per page after that, including reasonable staff time. The rule does not set a different rate by requester.
X-rays and other special records: actual cost, meaning materials, supplies, labor and overhead.

When patients ask for their own records, HIPAA's cost-based fee limit can be lower than these per-page amounts. The federal page explains that limit.

When the patient's attorney asks

Under section 456.057(7)(a), records may not be furnished to, and the patient's condition may not be discussed with, anyone other than the patient, the patient's legal representative, or other providers involved in the patient's care, "except upon written authorization from the patient." A request from a personal injury attorney should come with the patient's signed authorization.

The physician and chiropractic fee rules apply the "other entities" rate of up to $1.00 per page to requesters who are not patients or government agencies. The physical therapy rule uses the same $1.00 and $0.25 amounts for everyone. Practices must also keep a record of every disclosure to a third party, including its purpose (section 456.057(11)).

Subpoenas

Section 456.057(7)(a)3 allows release without the patient's authorization "in any civil or criminal action" on a subpoena from a court of competent jurisdiction and proper notice to the patient or the patient's legal representative by the party seeking the records. Information the patient told the practitioner can be compelled by subpoena at a deposition, evidentiary hearing or trial for which proper notice has been given (section 456.057(7)(c)).

In state civil cases, Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.351 governs subpoenas for records from a nonparty without a deposition. A party must give the other parties notice at least 10 days before the subpoena is issued (15 days if the notice is mailed). The subpoena must say the practice has the right to object. The practice can require advance payment of the reasonable cost of copies. If the practice objects before production, the records are not produced under this rule.

Under section 90.902(11), a custodian's written certification or declaration can authenticate business records. It must state that the records were made at or near the time of the events, kept in the course of regular business and made as a regular practice.

Records that need extra consent

Psychiatric, psychological and psychotherapy records: when the patient asks, the practitioner may give a report of the examination and treatment instead of copies. On the patient's written request, complete psychiatric records must go directly to a later treating psychiatrist (section 456.057(6)).
HIV test results: these can be released only to listed people, including anyone named in a legally effective release. "A general release without such prior written authorization is not sufficient to release HIV test results" (section 381.004(2)(e)). Each disclosure must carry the statutory notice against further disclosure.
Genetic test results: these are confidential and may not be disclosed without the person's express consent (section 760.40(2)).
Substance abuse treatment: records of service providers licensed under chapter 397 need written consent, with limited exceptions (section 397.501(7)).

Billing records and medical bills

The copies a patient can request under section 456.057(6) include insurance information. In injury cases, section 768.0427 (added in 2023) controls what evidence can prove medical expenses. For past bills that have been paid, it limits evidence to the amount actually paid. For unpaid charges, it lists the evidence a jury can consider. Examples include what the patient's health coverage would pay, or 120 percent of the Medicare rate for patients with no coverage or with Medicare or Medicaid.

For treatment under a letter of protection, the claimant must disclose these items before claiming those medical expenses:

A copy of the letter of protection.
All bills, itemized and coded (for example, CPT or HCPCS codes for practitioner billing).
If the provider sold the account to a factoring company, the buyer's name and the price paid.
Whether the patient had health coverage.
Who referred the patient for treatment under the letter of protection.

The section applies to cases filed after March 24, 2023.

How long to keep records

Physicians: at least 5 years from the last patient contact (Rule 64B8-10.002). A physician who closes, sells or relocates a practice must publish notice for 4 consecutive weeks and send a copy to the Board of Medicine.
Chiropractors: at least 4 years from the patient's last appointment (Rule 64B2-17.006). After a closure, retirement or death, records of patients seen in the last 2 years must be kept for 2 years.
Physical therapists: the rule says to keep records "as long as needed" and to keep them available for at least 2 years after closing or relocating (Rule 64B17-6.0042).

We could not confirm an active-practice retention period for physical therapists in a primary source.

Recent changes

2023, chapter 2023-15 (HB 837): created section 768.0427 on medical-expense evidence and letter-of-protection disclosures, effective March 24, 2023.
2023, chiropractic Rule 64B2-17.006: amended effective April 23, 2023. The current text sets 4 years of retention in active practice.
2026, chapter 2026-165 (HB 47): effective July 1, 2026, records the Department of Children and Families requests under section 39.301(9)(a) must be furnished within 14 days.

What this means for your practice

Set an internal deadline well under 30 days. Florida says "timely" and bars delays for legal review, and HIPAA's 30 days is the outer limit.
Check which board rule sets your fees. Physicians and chiropractors charge patients less than other requesters. Physical therapists use one rate for all requesters.
Do not hold copies because a patient owes for treatment.
For attorney requests, get the patient's written authorization first. For HIV results, the authorization must specifically cover them.
For letter-of-protection patients, keep bills itemized and coded. The patient's attorney will need them, and any sale of the account will have to be disclosed.
Log every third-party disclosure and its purpose, as section 456.057(11) requires.

Sources

How we verified: statutes read on the Florida Legislature's official site (2026 Florida Statutes), board rules read in Cornell LII's copy of the Florida Administrative Code, session laws and the October 2026 civil rules read as official PDFs, on November 12, 2026.