By Mike Jackson

Most people believe their medical records belong to them and not their physicians, which is technically correct.

When a long time physician closed up his practice he turned over all patient medical records to a third party. Those patients must pay the third party in order to get their records transferred to a new physician.

Dan Green from South Bloomfield could not understand why, so he decided he better call Jackson.

‘Medical records, I believe belong to the patient not the doctor and you shouldn’t have to pay to get a copy of them’, said Green.

The State Medical Board sets limits on how much patients can be charged for their records. In some cases, it can cost as much as $125 if you’ve seen your doctor on a regular basis for the last twenty years.

We found several former practices that did not charge the patients but simply transferred the records to the new physician as a courtesy. That is not the case with Dan Green.