What Happens if I Miss the Deadline to File a Medical Malpractice Claim in Ohio?

If you’re injured due to someone else’s negligence while driving, tripping and falling on someone else’s property, or riding your motorcycle, you have two years from the accident date to file an injury claim in Ohio.

But if a medical provider hurts you, you have only one year from the date it happened to file a claim for compensation (with a few exceptions we cover in this blog). While one year may seem like a long time, those 12 months can pass quickly.

You aren't alone if you’re wondering what happens if you miss that deadline. Because of the stress and pain that medical malpractice often causes, it’s common for victims to not begin seeking compensation until the one-year mark is approaching or has already passed. However, while the one-year deadline applies to many victims, it doesn’t apply to all.

Keep reading to learn your options if you missed the deadline to file a medical malpractice claim in Ohio.

Multiple Exceptions May Still Allow You to File a Valid Medical Malpractice Claim

Don't lose hope if you missed the one-year deadline to file a medical malpractice claim in Ohio. While the general rule is that you must file within one year from the date the malpractice occurred, some exceptions might allow you to file later:

• Doctor-Patient Relationship Extension: If the healthcare provider who committed medical malpractice continued to treat you after the incident, the one-year clock may not start until the doctor-patient relationship ends.
• Discovery Rule: If you didn’t know about the injury right away, the clock starts when you discovered, or should have reasonably discovered, the malpractice incident. That means you have one year from learning about the malpractice incident to take legal action.
• 180-Day Letter: If the one-year period is almost over, you or your lawyer can send a “180-Day Letter” to the healthcare provider who harmed you. This notifies them of your intent to sue and extends the filing deadline by 180 days.
• Minor Victims: If you or someone you love was under age 18 when the malpractice incident occurred, the one-year deadline doesn’t begin until the victim’s 18th birthday.
• Fraud or Concealment: If the healthcare provider intentionally hid evidence of their malpractice, the deadline may be extended. This is rare but could apply if records were falsified or information was withheld.
• Wrongful Death: If the malpractice resulted in death, you have two years from the date of death to file a wrongful death lawsuit.

It can be difficult to learn which, if any, exceptions apply in your individual case, which is why we always recommend speaking to a lawyer as soon as possible. In your free case consultation, an experienced medical malpractice lawyer can help you determine if you are able to file a claim despite the statute of limitations.

The Absolute Deadline Is 4 Years from the Date of the Malpractice Incident

Despite these exceptions, Ohio has an absolute four-year statute of repose for medical malpractice cases. This means that under most circumstances, you cannot file a claim more than four years after the malpractice occurred. Thankfully, this is a much more generous timeline than the one-year statute of limitations.

Because the healing process can often take many months after a medical procedure or treatment, medical malpractice victims don’t always realize within one year that they were harmed due to negligence. However, most victims will either recognize on their own or be diagnosed with malpractice-related complications within four years of being harmed by healthcare providers.

There are two exceptions to the four-year statute of repose:

• Your Healthcare Provider Hid Evidence of Malpractice: If you continue seeing the same doctor whose malpractice harmed you, and that doctor and their staff knowingly hid evidence that you were harmed, the statute of repose may be extended. That’s because you would have had no way of definitively knowing you’re a victim of malpractice within the four-year time limit.
• Your Healthcare Provider Left a Foreign Object Inside Your Body: Surgeons and surgical teams use many tools and objects while performing procedures, including scalpels, scissors, clamps, and sponges. Rarely, these tools may be left inside patients’ bodies. Without proper imaging, additional surgery, or a complete physical examination, patients have no way of knowing they have foreign surgical tools left inside their bodies—even when they cause complications and injuries.

Although these examples allow victims to extend the four-year statute of repose, the one-year discovery rule still applies. Schedule a consultation with a lawyer as soon as possible once you suspect you may have been a victim of medical malpractice.

What Should I Do If I Missed the One-Year Deadline?

Many medical malpractice victims qualify for at least one of the exceptions noted in this blog. In some cases, exceptions may apply even when victims don’t think they do. Extending the statute of limitations or using the four-year statute of repose often requires the experience and resources of a qualified Ohio medical malpractice lawyer.

If you missed the one-year deadline or even the four-year statute of repose, it’s still important to contact a law firm—especially if they offer a free consultation. This can help you learn your options and decide if you want to move forward with filing a claim if getting compensation is still a possibility based on the circumstances of your case.

Contact Our Ohio Medical Malpractice Attorneys

At Nurenberg, Paris, Heller & McCarthy, we know malpractice isn’t always apparent to victims. To make matters worse, victims are often reassured by their healthcare providers that their complications are expected and that they’re healing normally.

We know the realities of malpractice and how it devastates families, and we work hard to hold negligent providers and facilities accountable when innocent people are harmed. Contact us today for a free consultation. We want to put our experience to work for your family during this difficult time.

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