Almost every state answers this question without ever mentioning medicine. Only three states have a limitations period written specifically for medical debt. Everywhere else, a hospital or physician bill borrows the state’s ordinary deadline for suing on a written contract or an open account, which is why two websites can list different numbers for the same state and both be defensible.
This page gives the deadline for all 50 states and DC, cites the statute for each one, and says where the text came from. It also covers the four things most pages get wrong: that the deadline kills the lawsuit and not the debt, that the seven-year credit reporting rule is an entirely different clock, that a $5 payment can restart the whole period, and that a time-barred lawsuit still wins if you do not show up. This is consumer information, not legal advice. Deadlines turn on facts specific to your account, and if you have been sued you should talk to a lawyer or your local legal aid office.
Step 1: Find Your State’s Deadline
Read the table with two caveats. First, whether your bill counts as a “written contract” or an “open account” often depends on whether you signed intake paperwork containing payment terms, which most hospitals require and most urgent cares do not; where a state uses different periods for the two, both are listed. Second, the column on the right says exactly where the text was read. Rows marked state code were read from the state’s own legislature, courts, or law-portal site. Rows marked Justia were read from a legal publisher reproducing the state code, because the state does not publish its statutes on a site an ordinary browser can reach. All rows were checked in September 2026.
| State | Deadline that governs a medical bill | Statute | Text read from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 6 years (written promise; stated or liquidated account); 3 years (open account) | Ala. Code §§ 6-2-34, 6-2-37 | Justia |
| Alaska | 3 years (contract, express or implied) | AS 09.10.053 | Justia |
| Arizona | 6 years (written contract) | A.R.S. § 12-548 | state code |
| Arkansas | 5 years (written obligation) | Ark. Code § 16-56-111 | Justia |
| California | 4 years (written contract) | Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 337 | state code |
| Colorado | 6 years (liquidated debt); 3 years (contract generally) | C.R.S. §§ 13-80-103.5, 13-80-101 | state code |
| Connecticut | 6 years (account, or simple, implied, or written contract) | Conn. Gen. Stat. § 52-576 | state code |
| Delaware | 3 years (debt not under seal) | 10 Del. C. § 8106 | state code |
| District of Columbia | 3 years (simple contract) | D.C. Code § 12-301(7) | state code |
| Florida | 3 years, medical-specific, from referral to a collector (chapter 395 facility); 5 years (written contract) | Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4), § 95.11(2)(b) | state code |
| Georgia | 6 years (written contract); 4 years (open account) | O.C.G.A. §§ 9-3-24, 9-3-25 | Justia |
| Hawaii | 6 years (debt founded on contract) | HRS § 657-1(1) | state code |
| Idaho | 5 years (written contract) | Idaho Code § 5-216 | state code |
| Illinois | 10 years (written contract) | 735 ILCS 5/13-206 | state code |
| Indiana | 6 years (written contract for payment of money) | Ind. Code § 34-11-2-9 | Justia |
| Iowa | 10 years (written contract); 5 years (unwritten) | Iowa Code § 614.1(5), (4) | state code |
| Kansas | 5 years (written agreement) | K.S.A. 60-511 | state code |
| Kentucky | 10 years (written contract executed after July 15, 2014) | KRS 413.160 | state code |
| Louisiana | 3 years (compensation for services rendered) | La. Civ. Code art. 3494 | state code |
| Maine | 6 years (all civil actions) | 14 M.R.S. § 752 | state code |
| Maryland | 3 years (civil action at law) | Md. Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 5-101 | state code |
| Massachusetts | 6 years (contract) | G.L. c. 260, § 2 | state code |
| Michigan | 6 years (breach of contract) | MCL 600.5807(9) | state code |
| Minnesota | 6 years (contract, express or implied) | Minn. Stat. § 541.05, subd. 1(1) | state code |
| Mississippi | 3 years (catch-all) | Miss. Code § 15-1-49 | Justia |
| Missouri | 10 years (writing for payment of money) | Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.110(1) | state code |
| Montana | 6 years (written); 5 years (not written) | MCA § 27-2-202(1), (2) | state code |
| Nebraska | 5 years (written agreement) | Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-205 | state code |
| Nevada | 6 years (written contract); 4 years (open account) | NRS 11.190(1)(b), (2)(a) | state code |
| New Hampshire | 3 years (personal actions) | RSA 508:4 | state code |
| New Jersey | 6 years (contractual claim) | N.J.S.A. 2A:14-1 | Justia |
| New Mexico | 6 years (written contract) | NMSA § 37-1-3(A) | Justia |
| New York | 3 years, medical-specific, from treatment | CPLR 213-d | state code |
| North Carolina | 3 years (contract, express or implied) | N.C.G.S. § 1-52(1) | state code |
| North Dakota | 6 years (contract, express or implied) | N.D.C.C. § 28-01-16(1) | state code |
| Ohio | 6 years (written agreement) | R.C. 2305.06 | state code |
| Oklahoma | 5 years (written contract); 3 years (not in writing) | 12 O.S. § 95(A)(1), (2) | state code |
| Oregon | 6 years (contract, express or implied) | ORS 12.080 | state code |
| Pennsylvania | 4 years (contract) | 42 Pa.C.S. § 5525(a) | state code |
| Rhode Island | 10 years (all civil actions) | R.I. Gen. Laws § 9-1-13(a) | state code |
| South Carolina | 3 years (contract, express or implied) | S.C. Code § 15-3-530(1) | state code |
| South Dakota | 6 years (contract, express or implied) | SDCL 15-2-13(1) | state code |
| Tennessee | 6 years (contracts not otherwise covered) | Tenn. Code § 28-3-109(a)(3) | Justia |
| Texas | 4 years (debt; open or stated account) | Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.004(a)(3), (c) | state code |
| Utah | 6 years (written contract) | Utah Code § 78B-2-309(1)(b) | state code |
| Vermont | 6 years (civil action) | 12 V.S.A. § 511 | state code |
| Virginia | 3 years, medical-specific, from the final invoice due date | Va. Code § 8.01-246(B) | state code |
| Washington | 6 years (written contract; account receivable) | RCW 4.16.040(1), (2) | state code |
| West Virginia | 10 years (signed written contract); 5 years (other contract) | W. Va. Code § 55-2-6 | state code |
| Wisconsin | 6 years (contract, including fees for professional services) | Wis. Stat. § 893.43(1) | state code |
| Wyoming | 10 years (written contract); 8 years (not in writing) | Wyo. Stat. § 1-3-105(a)(i), (ii) | state code |
Three details in that table deserve a second look. Wisconsin’s statute is unusually clear for patients, because § 893.43(1) says outright that its six-year period covers “an action to recover fees for professional services.” Colorado is the state most often reported wrong: its general contract period is three years, but § 13-80-103.5 sets six years for actions to recover “a liquidated debt or an unliquidated, determinable amount of money,” which is what a fixed hospital balance is. And the medical-specific statutes are recent, with New York’s arriving in 2020, Virginia’s and Florida’s in 2024, so any chart published before 2025 is likely wrong on those three.
The other thing the table cannot tell you is when the clock started. Most states measure from the missed payment or the date of the last activity on the account. Florida measures from the date the facility referred the debt to a collector, and New York measures from the date of treatment. Get that start date wrong and the whole calculation is wrong.
Step 2: The Deadline Bars the Lawsuit, Not the Debt
This is the point almost every page on this topic blurs. In the CFPB’s own words, “a debt doesn’t generally expire or disappear until it’s paid.” What runs out is the creditor’s ability to use a court against you.
What that means in practice, once the period has passed:
- They cannot sue you, and they cannot threaten to. Both are prohibited.
- They can still call and write. The CFPB notes that in most states collectors can keep trying to collect after the statute of limitations expires, as long as they do not violate the law while doing it.
- The balance still exists. It can still be sold, still be reported (within the separate credit window below), and still be paid voluntarily.
- Bankruptcy is the exception to the suit ban. The prohibition on legal action does not extend to proofs of claim filed in a bankruptcy proceeding.
So “my medical debt is past the statute of limitations” and “my medical debt is gone” are different statements. If you want it actually erased, the routes are on our medical debt forgiveness page, and the highest-yield one is still hospital charity care, which many hospitals will apply retroactively to old accounts.
Step 3: Do Not Confuse This With the 7-Year Credit Reporting Clock
These are two different deadlines under two different laws, and they run independently.
| Statute of limitations | Credit reporting limit | |
|---|---|---|
| Source of law | State statute | Fair Credit Reporting Act (federal) |
| What it controls | Whether you can be sued | Whether it can appear on your credit report |
| Length | 3 to 10 years, per the table above | Generally 7 years for negative information |
| Clock starts | Missed payment, last activity, or a state-specific trigger | The delinquency being reported |
Per the CFPB, credit reporting companies can generally report most negative information for seven years, with bankruptcies running up to ten. Information about a lawsuit or a judgment can be reported for seven years or until the statute of limitations runs out, whichever is longer, which is the one place the two clocks touch.
The practical consequences run both directions. A four-year-old bill in Texas may be too old to sue on and still sitting on your report for three more years. A five-year-old bill in Illinois may be off nobody’s radar and still five years inside the window to sue. Medical debt also gets its own credit-reporting treatment from the bureaus, which is covered on our medical bills on your credit report page.
Step 4: Never Restart the Clock by Accident
This is the mistake that costs consumers the most money, and it is easy to make on a five-minute phone call.
The CFPB’s guidance is blunt: “making a partial payment or acknowledging you owe an old debt, even after the statute of limitations expired, may restart the time period.” Some state statutes say it outright. Arkansas Code § 16-56-111(b) provides that “partial payment or written acknowledgment of default shall toll this statute of limitations.” Utah Code § 78B-2-309(2) says that for a credit agreement the six-year period begins on the later of the day the debt arose, the day the debtor makes a written acknowledgment or promise to pay, or the day any payment is made on the debt.
So, on any medical debt that is or may be past the deadline:
- Do not make a “good faith” payment, however small, until you know the deadline has not expired or you have decided you want to pay regardless.
- Do not sign anything acknowledging the balance, and do not put “I owe this but cannot pay right now” in an email or a chat window.
- Do not agree to a payment plan on an old account before checking the date. A plan is an acknowledgment.
- Do ask, in writing, for the date of first delinquency and the date of last payment. You are entitled to validation of the debt, and those two dates are what the whole calculation runs on. The process is on our medical bills in collections page.
None of this applies to a current bill you intend to pay. Negotiating a fresh hospital balance, setting up a medical bill payment plan, or requesting an itemized hospital bill carries no downside. The restart risk attaches only to old, possibly time-barred accounts.
Step 5: Zombie Debt and What Regulation F Actually Says
“Zombie debt” is old debt that a buyer has purchased cheaply and revived, often years after the original provider wrote it off. Medical debt is a large share of what trades in that market, which is why a bill you have not heard about since 2019 can suddenly generate mail from a company you have never dealt with.
Two things in the federal rules matter here, and it is worth being precise about both:
The prohibition. Regulation F, at 12 CFR § 1006.26(b), states that “a debt collector must not bring or threaten to bring a legal action against a consumer to collect a time-barred debt,” defined as a debt for which the applicable statute of limitations has expired. The CFPB adds that a lawsuit filed after the statute of limitations expires is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
The disclosure that does not exist. Section 1006.26 as adopted contains only a definitions paragraph and that prohibition. It does not require a collector to tell you that a debt is time-barred. Under federal law the burden of knowing the date is yours, which is the entire reason this page exists.
Step 6: If You Are Sued, Raise the Defense or You Lose
Here is the part that turns a legal protection into a judgment. From the CFPB: “a court may still award a judgment against you if you don’t show up and raise the statute of limitations as a defense. Ordinarily, it’s the responsibility of the person being sued to point out that the statute of limitations has expired.”
Default judgments are how collectors win these cases. The suit gets filed, the consumer assumes an expired debt cannot hurt them, nobody appears, and the court enters judgment on a debt that could never have been enforced if anyone had objected. A judgment then opens the door to wage garnishment and bank levies where state law allows them, and it can be reported for seven years or until the statute of limitations runs, whichever is longer.
What to do instead, if you are served:
- Note the response deadline on the summons. It is usually 20 to 30 days and it is not negotiable.
- File a written answer with the court before that deadline. Do not just call the collector’s lawyer.
- State the statute of limitations as an affirmative defense in that answer, by name. Courts generally will not raise it for you.
- Do not offer a payment before you file. A payment at this stage can hand them the argument that the clock restarted.
- Get help. Legal aid, a court self-help center, or a consumer attorney. Many take FDCPA cases on contingency, because suing on a time-barred debt is itself a violation.
The Bottom Line
Most medical bills sit under a 3-to-6-year deadline, set by a contract statute that never mentions health care, and only New York, Virginia, and Florida have written a rule specifically for medical debt. Look up your state in the table, then find out when the clock started, because that date matters as much as the length.
Then remember what the deadline is and is not. It stops a lawsuit. It does not erase the balance, it does not stop the phone from ringing, and it has nothing to do with the seven years the debt can sit on your credit report. Until you know your dates, do not pay anything, sign anything, or agree to a plan on an old account. And if a summons arrives, answer it in writing and say the words “statute of limitations,” because a defense you do not raise is a defense you do not have.