Appendment Definition

Many commenters strongly encouraged the Secretary to adopt “appendment” rather than “amendment and correction” procedures. They argued that the term “correction” implies a deletion of information and that the proposed rule would have allowed covered entities to remove portions of the record at their discretion. Commenters indicated that appendment rather than correction procedures will ensure the integrity of the medical record and allow subsequent health care providers access to the original information as well as the appended information. They also indicated appendment procedures will protect both individuals and covered entities since medical records are sometimes needed for litigation or other legal proceedings.