Bio Family patients still need a clear route to their medical records

People who relied on Bio Family Clinic in Yuma are still asking the same practical question: where are their medical records, and who can release them?

KYMA reported Oct. 14 that former patients said they had been unable to get records. The station said the Arizona Attorney General’s Office was working with a vendor that would become the custodian. The report did not identify the vendor, set a transfer date or give patients a request process. We found no public request portal or phone number in the state materials reviewed for this story.

That gap matters. A legal right to see a record only helps when people know which office has it and how to ask. The attorney general’s case against Dr. Irfan Fazil explains the disruption, but it does not tell us who holds each file today or who must respond to a particular request.

The Attorney General’s Office said Fazil was sentenced Oct. 2 after his conviction in a Medicaid fraud case involving Bio Family Clinic, Yuma Mobile X-Ray and Yuma Kidney & Dialysis. The office described the scheme as involving $36.5 million. That is the state’s description of the criminal case, not a measure of the clinic’s records or the number of patients affected.

Arizona law generally requires a provider to permit access within seven business days after a written request. Requests connected to upcoming treatment have shorter deadlines in specified cases: 10 business days for qualifying electronic records less than 12 months old and 15 business days for older records in the current electronic system. Other covered requests generally have a 30-calendar-day deadline. Those timelines do not identify which custodian now has Bio Family’s records. HIPAA also provides access rights to health information maintained by or for a covered entity, subject to limited exceptions and procedures.

Patients should not send medical details or identity documents to an address they cannot verify. Until a custodian publishes instructions, people can ask their current treating provider or the relevant state health agency what official route is available and keep a copy of any written request. This article is general information, not individual legal or medical advice.

The next useful public update would name the custodian, say when the transfer takes effect, explain how to request records and provide a contact for incomplete or delayed requests. The Attorney General’s Office told KYMA it was working on the transfer, but the patient-facing details remain unanswered.

Sources

• KYMA report on former patients’ access problems, Oct. 14
• Arizona Attorney General’s sentencing announcement, Oct. 2
• Arizona Revised Statutes § 12-2293
• HHS guidance on individuals’ access to health information