how to request records

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Sometimes you want, or you need, to have copies of the psychiatric and counseling records pertaining to you or your child. It happens, and that's okay. But please be aware that our agency follows certain guidelines in order to release medical records, and what records can be released.

General Rules

• All record requests must be initiated by completing the form below. We do not accept faxes, mail, emails, or any other communication to request records other than this form. We do this for security purposes, and there are no exemptions to this rule. Thank you for your understanding.

• Clinicians cannot release any type of documentation to you; you must go through this records request process if you need copies of assessments, treatment plans, etc.

• Only parents/guardians who have documented guardianship of the client will have access to records. If there is something on our assessments that indicate that you might not have custody, we will not release any documents to you. You should be prepared to show proper documentation of your legal guardianship should it be asked.

• If you are a parent, and the child is over 13 years of age, him/her must ALSO sign the release of information form, otherwise the request is not valid and will not be processed.

• We do accept releases of information from other agencies. If you do not have a valid ROI, you can complete one on our website (clients > forms). Social Security and Disability requests already have a ROI embedded in them, so no need to complete another one.

• Verification of Services forms, as well as a Clinician's psychotherapy notes, are internal forms for quality assurance purposes, and are not released to the client or any other party, and are not part of the client's chart in accordance to HIPAA law.

• Release of records is a complementary process. There are not fees for faxed, or emailed records, although there will be a fee for any mailed records via U.S. Mail: $1.50 per page (minimum charge of $25.00), plus mailing cost of $8.00 for USPS secured shipping. You can pay for these costs on our website right here. 

• Do not expect your request to be processed right-away. Although we may be able to expedite the process depending on our volume and our office schedule, expect at least 14-21 days for processing, longer if your records are old and we have to navigate our old medical records system.

• Lawyers. If you are submitting a subpoena for records, please make sure it is accompanied by a court order (signed by the judge) or a release of information signed by the client over 13 years of age, and parent/guardian if applicable. They can find a release here on our website. If you need to send a subpoena or related document: Lukas Counseling - 7065 Westpointe Blvd Ste 308 Orlando FL 32835 - Please be advised that we are not at the office everyday and sometimes we work remotely. You can email us directly at help@lukascounseling.org 

• Court Presence. If you are requesting the clinician's presence at court, it is highly advisable to instead replace that testimony with copies of documentation, since the Clinician will likely only recite from those records anyway, and might not provide any recommendations (especially in child-custody cases - the therapist will not make any recommendations on custody unless the therapist him/herself has been a treating clinician for ALL parties involved and is able to make such recommendation). If your subpoena calls for in-person testimony from the Clinician, please indicate the address where all charges will be invoiced to (see costs of mailing records above, plus be advised that all Court Testimony Activities (all-inclusive of all activities) will be billed at $80.00 per hour.

• Progress Notes. If you are requesting progress notes, please be advised that there is another application and process we have to go through in order to release these notes.