(a) Service records. Information received by the Department of Veterans Affairs from the Departments of the Army, Navy, Air Force, and the Department of Transportation relative to the military or naval service of a claimant is furnished solely for the official use of the Department of Veterans Affairs but such information may be disclosed under the limitations contained in §§1.501 through 1.526.

(b) Medical records. Information contained in the medical records (including clinical records and social data) may be released under the following conditions:

(1) Complete transcript of résumé or medical records on request to:

(i) The Department of the Army.

(ii) The Department of the Navy (including naval aviation and United States Marine Corps).

(iii) The Department of the Air Force.

(iv) The Department of Transportation (Coast Guard).

(v) Selective Service (in case of registrants only).

(vi) Federal or State hospitals or penal institutions when the veteran is a patient or inmate therein.

(vii) United States Public Health Service, or other governmental or contract agency in connection with research authorized by, or conducted for, the Department of Veterans Affairs.

(viii) Registered civilian physicians, on the request of the individual or his or her legal representative, when required in connection with the treatment of the veteran. (The transcript or resume should be accompanied by the statement “it is expected that the information contained herein will be treated as confidential, as is customary in civilian professional medical practice.”)

(ix) The veteran on request, except information contained in the medical record which would prove injurious to his or her physical or mental health.

(x) The next of kin on request of the individual, or legal representative, when the information may not be disclosed to the veteran because it will prove injurious to his or her physical or mental health, and it will not be injurious to the physical or mental health of the next of kin or cause repugnance or resentment toward the veteran; and directly to the next of kin, or legal representative, when the veteran has been declared to be insane or is dead.

(xi) Health and social agencies, on the authority of the veteran or his or her duly authorized representative.

(2) In addition to the authorizations in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, the Department of Justice, the Department of the Treasury, and the U.S. Postal Service may, on request, be given pertinent information from medical records for use in connection with investigations conducted by these departments. Each such request shall be considered on its merits, and the information released should be the minimum necessary in connection with the investigation conducted by these departments.

(3) Compliance with court orders calling for the production of medical records in connection with litigation or criminal prosecutions will be effected in accordance with §1.511.

[13 FR 7001, Nov. 27, 1948, as amended at 32 FR 10849, July 25, 1967; 60 FR 63938, Dec. 13, 1995]