The rule, in the statute’s terms
Section 213-d of the Civil Practice Law and Rules sets the time limit for an action on a medical debt brought by a hospital licensed under Article 28 of the Public Health Law or by a health care professional licensed under Title 8 of the Education Law. The action must be started within three years of treatment. New York added the section in the 2020 state budget.
Three years is short by the standards of New York debt law, and it was meant to be. Before 2020, medical debt fell under the longer limit for contract claims. Every medical debt protection, with its date.
How to count the three years
| Your situation | When the three years start |
|---|---|
| One emergency room visit | The date of the visit |
| A hospital stay | The treatment dates on the bill; keep the admission and discharge dates |
| A series of visits on one account | Each date of treatment; ask the provider which dates the balance covers |
| A bill that arrived months later | Still the date of treatment, not the date of the bill |
Find the date on the itemized bill, the explanation of benefits from your insurer or your own records. A statement that shows only an account balance is not enough; ask for the itemized bill, which lists the service dates line by line. How to read it.
What changes when the debt is time-barred
| Inside three years | After three years | |
|---|---|---|
| Can a hospital or provider sue? | Only within New York’s other limits, below | No, the time to sue has passed |
| Can a debt collector sue or threaten to sue? | Only within the same limits | No. Federal Regulation F bars it |
| Can they ask you to pay? | Yes | Yes |
| Can you still apply for hospital financial assistance? | Yes, at any stage | Ask; the hospital’s policy decides for old accounts |
| Can it go on your credit report? | Not from a New York hospital, provider or ambulance service | Same |
A time limit is a defense, not an automatic erasure. If a lawsuit is filed anyway, the court does not throw it out on its own: you raise the three-year limit in your answer, by the deadline on the papers. That is the moment to contact free legal services; New York City funds them for medical debt cases.
Inside the three years, other limits still apply
The three-year rule is the outer edge. Before it, a New York hospital is bound by the 2024 amendments to Public Health Law section 2807-k:
- No lawsuit and no referral to collections within 180 days of the first bill, or while a financial assistance application is pending.
- No lawsuit at all against a patient with household income under 400% of the federal poverty level ($63,840 for one person in 2026), and the hospital’s chief financial officer must attest to income above that line before filing.
- After any judgment: no wage garnishment, no lien on your primary residence, and interest of no more than 2% a year.
The timeline from first bill to lawsuit.
Who the three-year rule covers
Section 213-d names two kinds of creditor: a hospital licensed under Article 28 of the Public Health Law and a health care professional authorized under Title 8 of the Education Law, the part of New York law that licenses professions such as physicians, dentists, nurses and therapists. An action by either on a medical debt “shall be commenced within three years of treatment.”
| Who sent the bill | Does the three-year limit in 213-d apply? |
|---|---|
| A New York hospital (Article 28) | Yes |
| A licensed physician, dentist or other Title 8 professional in New York | Yes |
| A collection agency collecting for one of them | The debt is still a medical debt from that provider; raise 213-d |
| A debt buyer that bought the account | Ask a legal services lawyer; the original creditor’s identity matters |
| A provider in another state | That state’s limit, not 213-d |
| A credit card used to pay the bill | Card debt, outside 213-d |
The useful habit: before arguing about the amount, find out who the original creditor was and on what date you were treated. Those two facts decide whether 213-d answers the whole problem.
Medical debt collections inside and after the three years
A collector working a New York medical account is bound by several rules at once, and they change at the three-year mark.
| What a collector may do | Inside three years | After three years |
|---|---|---|
| Write or call to ask for payment | Yes, within federal contact limits | Yes |
| Sue, or threaten to sue | Only within New York’s other limits; hospitals not below 400% of the poverty level | No. 12 CFR 1006.26 says a collector “must not bring or threaten to bring a legal action” on a time-barred debt |
| Report it to a credit bureau | Not for New York hospital, provider or ambulance debt | Same |
| Refuse to identify the original creditor when you ask in writing | No | No |
| Take wages or put a lien on your home for a hospital or professional’s medical debt judgment | No, since November 2022 | No |
A letter that mentions “legal action” on an account whose treatment date is more than three years old is the kind of document worth keeping. It is evidence of a threat the federal rule prohibits. What to send a collector first.
The time limit is not debt relief
People searching for “medical debt relief” often mean one of three different things, and only one of them is a time limit.
The statute of limitations ends the right to sue. It does not erase the account, and the creditor can still ask.
Debt relief by purchase erases specific debts outright. In New York City, the nonprofit Undue Medical Debt buys medical debt and cancels it; if you receive its letter, the listed debts are gone. What an Undue Medical Debt letter means.
The Medical Debt Relief Act is a federal bill introduced in 2025 to keep medical debt off credit reports. It is not law. What it would do.
For a balance that is still inside three years, the tool that lowers the amount is the hospital’s financial assistance program, which you can apply to at any stage.
What to say about an old medical bill
- Don’t confirm the debt or pay anything on the first call. “Please send me written validation of this debt, including the original provider and the dates of service.”
- Check the date of treatment against today’s date. If more than three years have passed, the time to sue has passed.
- Answer in writing. “The dates of service on this account are more than three years ago. Under CPLR 213-d, the time to bring an action on this medical debt has expired. Please stop contacting me about it.”
- If court papers arrive anyway, answer them by the deadline and raise the time limit as a defense. Do not ignore them: an unanswered lawsuit can end in a default judgment even on an old debt.
- Keep copies of every letter and the envelope it came in.
Questions people ask
What is the statute of limitations on medical debt in New York?
Three years from the date of treatment, under Civil Practice Law and Rules section 213-d, for lawsuits by hospitals and licensed health care professionals.
Does the three years start from the bill date?
No. It starts from the date of treatment, even if the bill came later. If the account has been sold to a debt buyer, ask a legal services lawyer how the limit applies to your case.
Can a collector still contact me about a medical debt older than three years?
They can ask, but under federal Regulation F a debt collector may not sue or threaten to sue over a time-barred debt. You can ask in writing for contact to stop.
Do I have to pay a time-barred medical debt?
A court can no longer order you to pay it if you raise the time limit. Whether to pay anything voluntarily is your decision; check the dates first and get any agreement in writing.
What if I get sued for a medical debt that’s too old?
Answer the lawsuit by the deadline and raise the three-year limit as a defense. Contact free legal services; the court will not apply the time limit unless you raise it.
Does the three-year limit apply to dentists and doctors’ offices?
Yes, if they are health care professionals licensed under Title 8 of New York’s Education Law. CPLR 213-d covers both Article 28 hospitals and Title 8 professionals.
Can a collector threaten to sue me over an old medical bill?
Not over a time-barred one. Federal Regulation F, 12 CFR 1006.26, says a debt collector must not bring or threaten to bring a legal action to collect a time-barred debt. Keep any letter that does.
Is the statute of limitations the same as medical debt relief?
No. The time limit ends the right to sue but does not erase the account. Debt relief by a nonprofit such as Undue Medical Debt cancels specific debts, and hospital financial assistance reduces the amount.
Sources
- New York State Senate — Civil Practice Law and Rules section 213-d, actions on medical debt (checked 2026-11-03)
- Code of Federal Regulations — 12 CFR 1006.26, collection of time-barred debts (Regulation F) (checked 2026-10-07)
- New York State Attorney General — Hospital financial assistance (checked 2026-10-07)
- GovInfo — H.R. 4827, Medical Debt Relief Act of 2025 (introduced July 29, 2025) (checked 2026-11-03)
More in Medical Debt in New York: What Collectors Can and Cannot Do
- Hospital Payment Plans in New York: The 5% Cap, the 2% Interest Limit and the Order to Ask — A New York hospital payment plan can't cost more than 5% of your gross monthly income or charge over 2% interest. Calculate your cap and what to ask first.
- Medical Debt on Your Credit Report in New York: What the Law Says and What Actually Happens — New York has banned credit reporting of medical debt by hospitals and providers since December 2023. A federal court fight clouds that. How to dispute an entry.
- Medical Debt and Bankruptcy in New York: When It Matters and What to Try First — Most New York medical bills never need bankruptcy: hospitals cannot sue under 400% FPL or garnish wages. When filing matters, and free help in NYC.
This page explains how the system works. It is not medical advice. More.