Short Answer

Yes. In a North Carolina personal injury matter, your lawyer can usually request records from both a hospital and a rehabilitation facility if you provide a proper written authorization or if another lawful process applies. The main caveat is that each provider may keep separate records, billing files, imaging files, and discharge paperwork, so the requests must be specific and complete.

Why Records From Both Providers May Matter

If you received treatment at a hospital and then continued care at a rehab facility, both sets of records may help explain what happened after the injury. A hospital record may show the first evaluation, emergency treatment, imaging orders, medication notes, diagnoses, discharge instructions, and referrals. A rehab facility record may show therapy evaluations, progress notes, functional limits, care plans, discharge summaries, and follow-up recommendations.

For a Durham personal injury claim, these records can help connect the injury event to the treatment that followed. They may also help document the type of care received, the dates of treatment, out-of-pocket costs, and how the injury affected daily activity. The records do not prove every part of a claim by themselves, but they often form a key part of the claim file.

Medical bills are usually requested along with records. The records explain the care; the bills help document the charges. If the provider uses separate billing companies, your lawyer may need to request records from one place and itemized bills from another.

How a Lawyer Usually Requests Hospital and Rehab Records

A law firm generally cannot simply call a provider and receive your medical records. Medical information is confidential. Under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 8-53, confidential medical information is generally furnished with the patient’s authorization or through a lawful court process. Health care facility records are also not public records under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 131E-97.

In practice, the law firm will often ask you to sign a written medical authorization. That authorization should identify who may release information, who may receive it, what information may be released, and what date range is covered. Some providers accept a general authorization; others require their own form or portal process.

A careful records request usually includes:

• Your full legal name and any prior names used in treatment records.
• Date of birth and other identifying information needed by the provider.
• Date of injury or incident, when known.
• The treatment date range being requested.
• A request for the complete medical chart, not just a visit summary.
• A separate request for itemized bills and payment ledgers, when needed.
• A copy of the signed authorization.

For a hospital, the request may need to include emergency department notes, radiology reports, imaging, discharge paperwork, physician notes, nursing notes, lab results, and billing records. For a rehab facility, the request may need to include intake assessments, therapy notes, care plans, medication records, progress notes, discharge summaries, and billing documents.

One Authorization May Not Be Enough for Every Facility

Even when the treatment is connected, a hospital and a rehab facility may be separate legal entities. That means each may require its own request. If the hospital referred you to rehab, the rehab facility does not automatically send its full chart to the hospital or to your attorney.

Some larger medical systems store records in one patient portal, but that does not always mean the legal records department can process one request for every provider. A lawyer may need to send separate requests to:

• The hospital medical records department.
• The hospital billing department.
• The imaging or radiology records department.
• The rehab facility records department.
• The rehab billing office.
• Outside providers who treated you before or after rehab.

This is one reason it helps to give your lawyer a complete provider list. If a provider is left off the list, the claim file may be missing important information.

Records, Bills, and Provider Liens Are Related but Not the Same

In many North Carolina personal injury claims, a provider may claim a right to be paid from injury recovery funds for treatment related to the injury. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 44-49 addresses certain medical provider liens and requires, as a condition for that type of lien, that the provider furnish an itemized statement, hospital record, or medical report to the attorney upon request within the statutory time period.

This does not mean every record issue is automatic or instant. Providers may still need a valid authorization, correct patient information, and a properly directed request. It also does not mean every bill is valid, related, or payable from a claim. The law firm may need to review charges, health insurance payments, balances, and lien notices separately from the medical chart.

Common Delays When Requesting Records From Multiple Facilities

It is normal for hospital and rehab records to arrive at different times. Delays can happen when a provider needs a corrected authorization, when records are stored in different departments, when imaging is maintained separately, or when the provider asks for clarification about the date range.

Other common issues include:

• The provider sends only a summary instead of the full chart.
• The billing office sends a balance statement but not an itemized bill.
• The rehab facility sends therapy notes but not the discharge summary.
• Imaging reports are provided, but the actual images are not included.
• The name or date of birth on the request does not match the provider’s file.
• The provider requires its own authorization form even though another form was already signed.

These problems can usually be addressed, but they may take follow-up. Claim discussions with an insurance company do not automatically pause or extend lawsuit deadlines, so records should be requested early enough to avoid last-minute problems.

What You Can Do to Help Your Lawyer Get Complete Records

You can make the process smoother by giving your lawyer accurate information at the start. If you have discharge instructions, portal screenshots, appointment summaries, or bills, those documents can help identify the right provider and date range.

Useful information to gather includes:

• The hospital name and location.
• The rehab facility name and location.
• Approximate admission and discharge dates.
• Names of treating departments, therapy providers, or clinics, if known.
• Copies of discharge papers and follow-up instructions.
• Patient portal records you already downloaded.
• Itemized bills, balance statements, and collection letters.
• Health insurance explanations of benefits, if available.
• Any letters from Medicare, Medicaid, a health plan, or a provider claiming reimbursement.

You should not alter records or guess at dates if you are unsure. A reasonable estimate is often enough to begin the search, and the provider can sometimes confirm the exact treatment dates once the request is processed.

How This Applies to a Hospital and Rehab Facility Treatment History

When a person receives treatment first at a medical facility and then at a rehab facility, the lawyer will usually want records from both. The hospital chart may document the initial condition and discharge plan. The rehab chart may show what treatment continued after the hospital visit and whether the person had ongoing limitations during recovery.

If the legal matter involves an injury claim, the law firm may also request itemized billing from both places. That helps separate the medical story from the financial records. It also helps identify whether there are balances, insurance payments, or potential provider lien issues that need to be addressed before any claim is resolved.

The most important practical point is completeness. A claim file that includes only hospital records may miss weeks of rehab care. A file that includes only rehab records may miss the first evaluation and referral. Both sets of records can matter when evaluating injury, causation, treatment timeline, and damages.

Should You Sign the Insurance Company’s Medical Authorization Instead?

Sometimes an insurance adjuster asks for a broad medical authorization. That is different from your lawyer requesting records for your own claim file. Before signing an insurer’s form, it is wise to understand what records it allows the insurer to collect, what date range it covers, and whether it reaches unrelated providers or older medical history.

Your lawyer may choose to gather the records first, review them, and then decide what should be provided to the insurance company as part of the claim. That approach can help avoid sending incomplete, unrelated, or confusing documents without context. It does not guarantee how an insurer will respond, but it can make the claim presentation more organized.

When Wallace Pierce Law May Be Able to Help

Wallace Pierce Law may be able to help with the records process by identifying which providers need requests, preparing medical authorizations, following up with records departments, and organizing the records and bills once they arrive. In a North Carolina personal injury matter, this can include requests to a hospital, a rehab facility, imaging departments, billing offices, and other treatment providers.

The firm may also help review whether the records appear complete, whether itemized bills are missing, and whether any provider, health plan, or government program is asserting a reimbursement claim or lien. The goal is to build a clearer claim file, not to assume that every record or bill says the same thing.

If you already have some records, Wallace Pierce Law can review what you have and determine what may still need to be requested. For more detail on the records process, you may find this related article helpful: how medical records and bills are requested in an injury claim.

Talk to a Personal Injury Attorney in Durham

If your question involves injuries, insurance, fault, medical documentation, settlement paperwork, or a possible deadline, speaking with a licensed North Carolina attorney can help clarify your options. Call 919-313-2737 to discuss what happened and what steps may make sense next.

Disclaimer: This article provides general information about North Carolina personal injury law based on the single question stated above. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. It is not medical advice, tax advice, or insurance policy interpretation. Laws, procedures, and local practice can change and may vary by county. If there may be a deadline, act promptly and speak with a licensed North Carolina attorney.