It has come to our attention that certain bureau approved rehabilitation facilities have refused to honor requests from plaintiff attorneys for copies of reports from the client's case file.

In one instance the plaintiff attorney was allegedly advised that the facility would not provide any reports to either the client or the plaintiff attorney as the allegiance of the facility is to the referral source.

In another instance a plaintiff attorney requested information and medical reports regarding rehabilitation and was subsequently advised that his letter and signed information release had been forwarded to the referral source for disposition. A subsequent request from the attorney to the referral source went unanswered.

P O L I C Y

Effective immediately, all bureau approved rehabilitation facilities are expected to adhere to the following guidelines:

1. Case file material prepared by facility staff may be reviewed and copied by the client, the parents of a minor client, or a legal guardian, if the request is made in writing. If the client has reached the age of majority, the parents must be considered a third party, and access to client data prepared by the facility staff should only be allowed with the client's written permission. Clients, or a minor client's parents, may not have access to any data in the case file if it was obtained with or without cost from a source outside the facility unless permission is obtained from the originator of the material.
2. If a plaintiff attorney has the client's signed authorization, facility prepared case file material may be reviewed and copied. Data purchased or obtained from another source should be requested from the originator.
3. Clients or plaintiff attorneys requesting copies of medical reports from a facility case file should be advised to seek those reports from the referral source, pursuant to Section 418.385 of the Workers' Disability Compensation Act.

If you have any questions regarding the above guidelines, please e-mail wcinfo@cis.state.mi.us.