QUESTION
Can you photocopy a person's signature if they are infromed and consent
Asked on Aug 05th, 2015 on General Practice - North Carolina
More details to this question:
Can you legally photocopy a document with a patient's signature such as a release of information because they don't want to sign multiple sheets of paper for whatever reason (ie. hand hurts, laziness, etc)? I have had patient's become angry because I refused to do this due to my not knowing whether it was legal or not. I would like to know if this can be done legally since they are consenting to do so and are informed of where the releases are being sent for future reference.
1 ANSWER
The question is not whether it is legal (I know of no reason why it wouldn't be), but the more practical one of whether the recipients of the documents will accept photocopies or will require originals. To ensure that this problem doesn't arise, it is standard practice to include a clause in stipulations or other agreements that copies or printouts from electronic files are treated the same way as originals.
Answered on Aug 06th, 2015 at 12:22 PM