In a personal injury case, including a truck accident claim, the cost of medical treatment is a central component of damages. Proving those costs requires the actual billing records from the hospitals, physicians, imaging centers, therapists, and other providers who treated the injured person. Georgia law and federal privacy law together set out how those billing records may be obtained. The process differs depending on whether the records are requested cooperatively with the patient’s authorization or compelled through the formal discovery tools of a lawsuit.
Why billing records matter to damages
Medical billing records establish the amount charged for treatment connected to an injury. Georgia law allows an injured person to recover the reasonable value of necessary medical care. Billing records, often paired with medical records describing the treatment and with testimony that the charges were reasonable and the care necessary, form the documentary backbone of the medical expense portion of a damages calculation. They also support related categories such as projected future medical costs, which are estimated from the pattern and cost of past care.
Patient access and HIPAA authorization
Medical billing and treatment records are protected health information under the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and under Georgia law, including O.C.G.A. § 31-33-2, which governs a patient’s right to obtain copies of their own records. A provider generally may not release these records without proper authorization or legal compulsion.
The most common route to obtaining billing records outside of litigation, or early in a case, is a written authorization signed by the patient. A valid HIPAA-compliant authorization, meeting the elements set out in the federal privacy regulations, directs the provider to release the patient’s records, including itemized billing statements, to a designated recipient. Georgia does not mandate a single state authorization form, and a provider must honor any authorization that contains the required elements, though providers may also supply their own release forms. With a valid authorization, a provider may release records directly to the patient’s attorney or law firm, and the patient is not required to collect them in person.
Provider response times and fees
Georgia law addresses how quickly providers must respond and what they may charge. Under O.C.G.A. § 31-33-2, a provider is generally required to furnish requested records within a set period after receiving a proper request, and the statute sets limits on the per-page copying charges and other costs a provider may impose. When a request is made under the federal HITECH Act provision allowing patients to obtain an electronic copy of records maintained electronically, the cost is limited to a reasonable, cost-based fee, which is frequently lower than the per-page rates a provider might otherwise charge. These rules help control the expense of assembling a complete set of billing records.
Obtaining records through litigation
Once a lawsuit is filed, the parties have access to the formal discovery tools of Georgia’s Civil Practice Act, which provide additional ways to obtain billing records, including from providers who are not parties to the case.
A subpoena, governed by O.C.G.A. § 24-13-23 and related provisions, can command a non-party medical provider to produce billing and treatment records, or to appear for a deposition and bring those records. Because the records are protected health information, a subpoena alone is generally not sufficient under federal privacy rules. The provider must usually receive either a valid patient authorization, satisfactory assurance that the patient has been notified of the request and given an opportunity to object, or a qualified protective order entered by the court. Discovery requests directed at an opposing party, such as requests for production of documents under O.C.G.A. § 9-11-34, can also require that party to produce medical billing records in its possession or control.
Verification and authentication of records
For billing records to be used effectively in a damages calculation at trial, they generally must be authenticated, meaning shown to be genuine and accurate. Georgia’s Evidence Code allows medical records and bills to be admitted as business records when accompanied by a proper certification or testimony from a records custodian establishing that they were made and kept in the regular course of the provider’s business. Georgia law also includes provisions allowing certain medical bills and records to be admitted with a written certification, which can reduce the need for live custodian testimony. Authentication ensures the records relied upon for the damages figure are reliable.
Coordinating billing records with related information
A complete damages picture often requires more than the raw bills. Treatment records explain what care was provided and why, insurance and lien information shows what has been paid and what amounts may be owed to health care providers or insurers, and expert testimony connects the charges to the accident and addresses their reasonableness. Hospital liens, which Georgia law permits providers to assert against an injury recovery, are commonly identified through this same records-gathering process so they can be accounted for in any resolution of the case.
Conclusion
Obtaining medical billing records in Georgia generally begins with a HIPAA-compliant authorization signed by the patient, which allows providers to release itemized billing directly to counsel within the response times and fee limits set by O.C.G.A. § 31-33-2 and federal law. Once a lawsuit is underway, subpoenas and discovery requests provide a means to compel records, subject to the privacy protections that require authorization, notice, or a protective order. Properly authenticated, these billing records become the documentary foundation for calculating the medical expense component of damages.
Disclaimer
This article is provided strictly for general educational and informational purposes. It is intended to explain how Georgia law works as a matter of public legal education, and it does not constitute legal advice, a legal opinion, or a recommendation about any particular course of action. Reading this article, or contacting the website on which it appears, does not create an attorney-client relationship between the reader and any law firm, attorney, or author.
The law changes over time. Statutes, regulations, court rules, and judicial decisions discussed here may have been amended, repealed, superseded, or reinterpreted after the date of publication, and citations to specific code sections or cases reflect the law only as it was understood when this article was written. The application of any legal principle also depends heavily on the specific facts and circumstances of an individual matter, and outcomes vary from case to case.
For these reasons, no one should rely on this article as a substitute for advice from a licensed Georgia attorney who can review the particular facts involved. The author and publisher make no warranty, express or implied, regarding the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or applicability of the information provided, and disclaim any liability for any action taken or not taken based on this content.