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Your health records: Mexico.

A take-home sheet for people at the session. Other countries: United States · United Kingdom · Canada · Australia · New Zealand · India · Philippines · Argentina.

On your phone? Tap any address to open it. After the session: where to go next. Short address for this sheet: moraph.org/s/your-health-records/mx. Pass it on: cards to hand to someone.

Moraph for Good · Reach

Your health records: Mexico

Handout · moraph.org/commons/sessions/reach/your-health-records

In many countries you have a right to see your own health records and get a copy. This sheet sets out the steps, with the rules for where you live in the box below.

Asking for your records

  • Check the patient portal first; some records may already be there.
  • Ask the provider how they take requests: a form, email, letter or in person.
  • Say what you want, for which dates, and how you want it: paper, electronic or to view.
  • Keep a copy of your request and note the date.

What to expect

  • You may be asked to prove who you are.
  • Ask about any cost before they start.
  • If they refuse any part, ask for the reason in writing.

Checking and correcting

  • Check medicines, allergies, conditions and contact details.
  • Ask in writing for a correction, with a copy of the page.
  • If they disagree, ask for your own statement to be added.

Keeping records safe

  • Store copies somewhere private and think before sharing them.
  • Use a strong, unique password for any online account with your records.
  • Sign out fully on a shared or public computer.

In Mexico

  • Who keeps your record. Under NOM-004-SSA3-2012, the official standard on the expediente clínico (clinical record), the record belongs to the institution or doctor who made it, but you have rights over the information in it. It must be kept for at least 5 years from the last medical act.
  • Asking for a summary. Health professionals must explain your information to you verbally. A resumen clínico (clinical summary) or other documents from the record must be requested in writing. Information is shared with others only on the written request of the patient, a guardian, a legal representative or a doctor they authorize, or with competent authorities.
  • Your data rights. Health data is sensitive personal data. You can ask to access or correct your data free of charge, apart from the cost of copies or delivery. Public institutions must answer within 20 working days, which can be extended once by 10; private providers within 20 working days.
  • If a private provider refuses. You can file a solicitud de protección de datos (data protection request) with the Secretaría Anticorrupción y Buen Gobierno within 15 working days of the provider’s reply, or once its time to reply has run out.
  • IMSS records in the app. In the IMSS Digital app, the Cédula Digital de Salud shows insured people, pensioners and beneficiaries aged 18 or over 36 months of outpatient care: prescriptions, sick leave, lab results and vital signs.

Official places to check:

General information, not advice about your own situation. Checked 22 October 2026. If an official source says something different, it is right. Free to copy and adapt. moraph.org/commons/sessions/reach/your-health-records Version of .

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