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note that the following information is not intended to be
legal advice or to create an attorney client relationship.
Before relying on any information, you should contact an
attorney licensed to practice in your state. See also
BAEN's legal
disclaimer. To submit a question for this column,
email your question to info@equinelegalsolutions.com. Please
identify yourself as well as any other parties involved so
that we can be sure to avoid conflicts in interest in
answering your question. We will keep all parties’
identities confidential. By submitting your inquiry to
this column, you grant permission for your inquiry to be
published and for your inquiry to be edited for length,
grammar or clarity. Due to space limitations, we cannot
publish an answer to every question we receive, but we do
try to provide an unpublished answer by email or
telephone. View
previous Q&A's in the Legal Solutions Archives. |
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Who
Owns Vet Records?
Q:
I bought a horse that later came up lame, and
I’d like to get a copy of his previous vet records.
When I called the office of the previous vet,
they said that they would need permission from the
horse’s previous owner to release the records.
I thought that health information went with the
patient, not the owner.
Who is right?
A:
The vet’s office is correct, and in fact
sharing this type of information without the previous
owner’s consent can be a criminal offense. Section 4857 of the California Business and Professions Code
provides that veterinarians cannot share information
about the animal patient, the person responsible for the
patient at the time of treatment or the care provided to
the patient without the consent of the person
responsible for the patient at the time of treatment.
There are limited instances in which vets can
share these types of information – in response to a
court order or subpoena, to comply with any laws, to
confer with another veterinarian regarding diagnosis or
treatment, to assist in the veterinarian’s defense in
a malpractice action or to assist law enforcement in an
animal welfare matter.
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| About
the Author: Rachel
Kosmal McCart, the founder of Equine
Legal Solutions, is a lifelong horsewoman and
experienced lawyer. Equine Legal Solutions, the Legal
Counsel with Horse SenseTM, offers a full range
of legal services for the horse community, including
dispute resolution, customized contracts and risk
management assessment. |
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Copyright
© 2003 Equine
Legal Solutions and the Bay Area Equestrian
Network. All rights reserved. The above article is the
property of the Author and may not be duplicated or redistributed
in any way without permission.
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