Patients file lawsuit against two DC hospitals alleging excessive fees to obtain medical records

Two D.C. hospitals are being sued by patients who say they were forced to pay excessive and illegal charges to obtain copies of their electronic medical records. MedStar Georgetown University Hospital and George Washington University Hospital are accused of violating District consumer protection laws by three patients who say they were asked to pay hundreds to thousands of dollars to get the electronic copies. The patients are seeking class-action status on behalf of all patients who obtained medical records from the hospitals, the suit says. According to the suit, an Alexandria couple sent a letter to MedStar Georgetown requesting the electronic medical records from their child's January 2013 birth, including imaging studies and billing records.