The records of your birth can contain a lot of useful information and in some cases can be relatively easy to get, as in many hospitals, after a certain period of time the records are moved to an archiving company and stored in warehouses staffed by people who know little about adoption and have had little contact with medical requests. The place to start, is with the hospital.

If you do not have your birth name, you have a few options. You can request the records under your adoptive name and that of your adoptive parent(s), hoping that, especially in the case of a private adoption, they might be listed as responsible parties and therefore the records will be cross referenced and the clerk will just send them all to you,(do not mention adoption).

In addition to the records of your birth, some Obstetrics units keep an 'OB' log that lists the babies born each day that could be of use. How long both the log and your particular birth records are kept varies from hospital to hospital but most hospitals do have the records in some form, kept somewhere, it may just take some persistence on your part to locate them. Do not mention that you were adopted. You will NOT receive your records even though it is not illegal for you to request them.

I was not named at birth and only had my birth mothers name when I was able to get a copy of my medical records. I asked for them using my first name and my birth last name. However, they weren’t able to locate them and I had to provide my date of birth. I had them in my hands in a matter of minutes and walked out of the hospital with them. I will never forget that day as once I had them in my possession, I was afraid to open them until I was out of the hospital and off of hospital property.

In most cases, your birth records will not indicate by any special flag that you are adopted, and so if you do have your birth name, you can usually obtain them without trouble if the hospital has not destroyed them. On the other hand, usually one of the attractions of obtaining the records is for a name, so it's a classic double-edged sword, and you should use your best judgment.

A new born is considered a patient so separate medical files are created for both the mother and child. These records may contain your mother’s name and address at the time, next of kind, mother’s birth date, social security number and other background information. Again, DO NOT MENTION ADOPTION!

If you are a birth parent these records will not help you locate a surrendered child but by obtaining the birth records you might receive a copy of the child’s birth registration and a copy of the foot prints which can validate your birth experience. If the hospital is reluctant to provide the records to you, then ask your personal physician to request them. In order to obtain you need to ask for your hospital admission records for the time of birth and for your child.

I have attached sample letters for that can be adapted for your use.

SAMPLE #1

HOSPITAL RECORDS AND
MEDICAL RELEASE FORM FOR ADOPTEES

Date

Name of Hospital
Medical Records Dept.
Street
City, State, Zip

To Whom It May Concern:

I authorize and request the (name of hospital) to furnish to myself a copy of all information concerning my admission, full medical record of delivery, statistics at birth, footprints if taken, nursery record, physical examinations, discharge records. The following information will assist you in locating my records:

Patient: (full name at birth)
Date of Birth:
Mother's Name:
Father's Name:

Signatures:
Name at birth
Current name (use your first name at birth and your current last name)
Address
City, State, Zip


SAMPLE #2

HOSPITAL RECORDS and
MEDICAL RELEASE FORM FOR BIRTHPARENTS

Date

Name of Hospital
Medical Records Department
Address
City, State, Zip code

I authorize and request the (Name of Hospital) and the physicians who attended me while I was a patient in said hospital from (date to date) to furnish to myself a copy of all information concerning my case history and treatment and also a copy of the medical records of the child, (name at birth), who was born to me on (date).

(Name at time of admission)
Signed
Current Name
Address


Witness