There are no legal requirements for medical record retention; providers can destroy records at any time after the patient's last visit

Record retention requirements vary by state but generally mandate minimum retention periods ranging from 6-10 years after the last patient encounter for adult patients, with longer periods for minors — the PMHNP must verify her state's specific retention statute, ensure secure storage or transfer of records that must be retained, notify patients of practice closure with adequate time to request records, arrange for a custodian of records, and use HIPAA-compliant destruction methods for records past the retention period

Federal law uniformly requires all medical records to be retained for exactly five years from the date of creation, with no state variation

Electronic health records eliminate the need for record retention compliance because digital records exist indefinitely in cloud storage without any cost or management requirements