Medical Records Access Fairness Act of 2026

**What Happened and Status:** On March 4, 2026, Rep. Bill Foster (D-IL) introduced H.R. 7790, the Medical Records Access Fairness Act of 2026, in the 119th Congress. The bill was referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce with one cosponsor (Mrs. Beatty). It is in the early legislative stage—still at the referral step—so no hearings or votes have occurred. The bill proposes amending the HITECH Act to require healthcare providers to give patients free electronic copies of their protected health information, with limited exceptions (duplicate requests or non-electronic copies when portal access already exists). No companion bill exists in the Senate, and no appropriations are attached. **Money Trail—Authorize vs. Appropriate:** This bill is a regulatory mandate, not a spending bill. It does not authorize or appropriate any federal funding. Instead, it imposes compliance costs on healthcare providers (hospitals, clinics, etc.) by eliminating their ability to charge patients for electronic health record access. The financial impact flows as cost-push innovation: providers must invest in scalable, interoperable health IT infrastructure—EHR upgrades, secure patient portals, data transmission standards—to meet the no-cost requirement efficiently. The total addressable market for health IT services and software in the U.S. is ~$100B+ annually; this bill could drive incremental spending in the low billions over several years as providers upgrade systems. **Structural Winners and Losers:** The primary structural winner is the health IT services sector, particularly companies offering EHR platforms, data interoperability, and compliance consulting. Pure-play health IT companies like Epic Systems (private), Cerner (now part of Oracle, $ORCL), and NextGen Healthcare ($NXGN) are direct beneficiaries, but as a public company with disclosed market data, DXC Technology ($DXC) is the best public proxy for this analysis. DXC provides IT outsourcing and systems integration to healthcare systems, including EHR implementation and data management. However, DXC is a diversified IT services firm (not a pure-play), so healthcare exposure is modest relative to its ~$3B+ revenue base. Weaker players include small healthcare providers who may face margin pressure from compliance costs without offsetting revenue. **Real Market Data Analysis:** DXC's stock has declined significantly: current price $11.53, down 10.06% over 7 days and 2.37% over 30 days, trading near its 52-week low of $11.23. The 52-week range is $11.23–$17.26, indicating substantial price weakness. The recent sell-off (from $13.31 on April 20 to $11.53 on April 28) likely reflects broader market concerns or company-specific headwinds, not legislative news. The bill's introduction in early March did not seem to reverse the downtrend. This suggests the market is not yet pricing in any legislative catalyst, which could represent an opportunity if the bill gains momentum. **Timeline:** No committee markups or hearings have been scheduled. The bill's early-stage status and single-party sponsorship (Democrat from Illinois) suggest low near-term probability of passage in a divided 119th Congress. Significant legislative steps remain: committee hearings, markup, House floor vote, Senate passage (with companion bill), and Presidential signature. Given the narrow focus and lack of urgency, passage in the 2025-2027 session is uncertain but possible if attached to a larger health package.