This is especially true if you maintain permanent records on thousands of patients that you may not have seen for many years. The statute of limitations for chiropractic malpractice is two years from the time the patient knew or should have known that the doctor committed malpractice. This statute of limitations does not run against a patient until that patient reaches 18 years of age. In other words, a child's claim of malpractice is not time barred until the child's twentieth birthday. Often it is difficult to tell whether an individual is still a patient.
Some patients go months, or even years, between visits to the doctor.
Yet, when those patients present themselves for treatment it may be helpful to review records from their files. Many doctors treat Medicare patients. Moreover, because Medicare may reopen the claim for good cause anytime within four years after the claim has been determined, it would be prudent to maintain the records of Medicare patients for at least that length of time. It is worth noting that Medicare requires hospitals to maintain medical records for at least five years. We recommend that patient files be maintained for at least ten years.