Questions & Answers

Is it possible to gain access to my deceased mother's medical files and if so, how do I go about it?

A custodian may release some information about deceased relatives under Section 35(1)(d.1) of the Health Information Act (HIA), which reads:

35(1) A custodian may disclose individually identifying diagnostic, treatment and care information without the consent of the individual who is the subject of the information

35(1)(d.1) where an individual is deceased, to a family member of the individual or to another person with whom theindividual is believed to have had a close personal relationship, if the information relates to circumstances surrounding the death of the individual or to health services recently received by the individual and the disclosure is not contrary to the express request of the individual,

Alternatively, the HIA also states that a person can exercise the rights of the individual, if

104(1)(d) if the individual is deceased, by the individual’s personal representative if the exercise of the right or power relates to the administration of the individual’s estate,

If you would like to make a formal access request, you must make the request to the custodian that you believe has custody or control of the record(s). The request needs to be made in writing and the custodian needs to be advised that the request is being made in accordance with the HIA. The custodian has the right to charge a $25.00 administration fee and they have 30 days to comply with the request.

If the custodian does not reply to your request within 30 days or has not completed the request fully, you can ask the Information and Privacy Commissioner to review the custodian’s response. To ask the Commissioner to review the decision of the custodian, you must deliver the request, in writing, to the Commissioner within 60 days of receiving the response from the custodian or, if you have not received any response, after the thirty days allotted to the custodian for response.

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