If You Think a Medical Error Hurt You
Your health comes first. A family member can request records and keep the timeline while you get the care you need.
- Keep getting care. If trust is gone, a second opinion or a new doctor is your choice to make.
- Request the full chart. From every hospital, clinic and office: test results, imaging, nursing notes and bills.
- Build a timeline. Each visit, procedure, prescription and conversation, with dates and who said what.
- Keep the clutter. Pill bottles, after-visit summaries, MyChart messages, reminder cards and EOBs from your insurer.
- Skip the Facebook post. Details belong with your care team and your lawyer.
A nurse or surgeon who said "I'm sorry" or explained a mistake? Note it down with a name and date. Keep any letter about an "unexpected outcome" or a billing write-off.
Hospitals and Clinics in the Midlands
Columbia-area patients are treated at Prisma Health Richland, Prisma Health Baptist, Prisma Health Baptist Parkridge, MUSC Health Columbia Medical Center Downtown and Northeast, Lexington Medical Center, and the Wm. Jennings Bryan Dorn VA Medical Center. Moncrief Army Health Clinic at Fort Jackson serves military patients. Whether a facility is private, public or federal can change the rules.1
Steps Required Before a Lawsuit
Before filing a medical malpractice lawsuit in South Carolina, a patient generally must serve a Notice of Intent to File Suit and file an expert affidavit identifying at least one alleged negligent act or omission, unless a statutory exception applies. Pre-suit mediation and special timing rules are part of the process too.3 That takes time, so the earlier a lawyer looks, the better.
Want someone to look at your situation?
Talk with our team about what happened and ask the questions on your mind.
The Filing Deadline
The general rule is three years from the alleged malpractice or from when the injury was or reasonably should have been discovered. Many claims also face a six-year outer limit, with exceptions for certain foreign-object cases and claims involving children.1 An insurance claim does not stop the clock.4
Malpractice by a South Carolina public hospital or other government provider may fall under the Tort Claims Act. Those suits generally must be filed within two years, or three years with a qualifying verified claim.5 Caps and other requirements may apply.2
For VA care and some other federal facilities, the written claim to the federal agency generally comes first and is due within two years.6 Soldiers on active duty, including those treated at Moncrief, generally cannot sue the federal government for malpractice in care incident to service, but may be able to file an administrative claim.7 See medical malpractice claims in South Carolina for more.
Talk With Us
Medicine carries real risks, and some bad outcomes couldn't have been prevented. We listen to the whole story and tell you honestly what we see.
Our office is on King Street in Charleston. We take cases across South Carolina, including Columbia and the Midlands. The first conversation can happen by phone. If the harm happened in long-term care, see Columbia nursing home abuse claims.
South Carolina Law on This
- South Carolina generally requires medical malpractice claims to be filed within three years of the alleged malpractice or when the injury was discovered or reasonably should have been discovered. Many claims are also subject to a six-year outer limit, but special rules and exceptions apply, including certain foreign-object cases and claims involving children. The applicable deadline can also depend on whether the provider is a private, state, local, or federal healthcare entity.1
- Claims against a South Carolina state or local government agency have their own filing deadline, which can be shorter, and there could be caps on damages under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act, depending on the facts of the case.2
- Before filing a medical malpractice lawsuit in South Carolina, a patient generally must serve a Notice of Intent to File Suit and file an expert affidavit identifying at least one alleged negligent act or omission, unless a statutory exception applies. The process also includes pre-suit mediation and special rules that affect filing deadlines.3
- South Carolina's statute of limitations generally sets the deadline for filing a lawsuit in court. Simply opening a claim with an insurance company or negotiating with an insurance adjuster does not stop the statute of limitations from running.4
- Lawsuits under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act generally must be filed within two years after the loss was or should have been discovered. A three-year deadline may apply if a qualifying verified claim was first filed under the Act.5
- Injury claims against the federal government, such as care at a VA hospital, military clinic or some federally funded health centers, or a crash with an on-duty federal employee, generally must first be filed in writing with the agency within two years, before any lawsuit. If the agency denies the claim, a lawsuit generally must be filed within six months after the agency mails its written denial.6
- Active-duty service members generally cannot sue the federal government for medical malpractice involving care received incident to military service. However, they may be eligible to seek compensation through an administrative claim with the Department of Defense for malpractice by a DoD health care provider at a covered military medical facility.7
- A medical malpractice claim generally requires proof of an applicable professional standard of care, a breach of that standard, causation, and compensable injury. A poor medical outcome does not by itself mean malpractice occurred.8
- In South Carolina, a wrongful death lawsuit is brought by the personal representative of the deceased person's estate on behalf of family members designated by law. The beneficiaries are the surviving spouse and children, or, if there are none, the deceased person's parents. If none of those relatives survive, other legal heirs may benefit from the claim.9
- Under South Carolina law, wrongful death lawsuits generally must be filed within three years of the person's death. However, different rules may apply when a death involves medical malpractice, a government agency, or other circumstances governed by special laws. A related survival claim may also have a different filing deadline.10
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I tell malpractice from a bad result?
A poor medical outcome does not by itself mean malpractice occurred. A claim generally requires proof of an applicable professional standard of care, a breach of that standard, causation, and compensable injury.8 Other doctors' opinions often help answer that, and a lawyer can decide whether the records justify a closer look.
Do I need my chart before calling?
No. Requesting it is a good idea, but you can call without it. A list of the providers, the hospital or clinic, the dates and what you recall is enough to start.
Mom died after a procedure. Can our family bring a claim?
My treatment was at the Dorn VA. Is that different?
Usually, yes. Injury claims against the federal government, such as care at a VA hospital, generally must first be filed in writing with the agency within two years, before any lawsuit.6 Active-duty service members generally cannot sue the federal government for malpractice in care incident to service, though an administrative claim with the Department of Defense may be available.7
Sources
- S.C. Code § 15-3-545
- S.C. Code §§ 15-78-110 and 15-78-120
- S.C. Code §§ 15-79-125 and 15-36-100
- S.C. Code §§ 15-3-20 and 15-3-530
- S.C. Code §§ 15-78-80 and 15-78-110
- 28 U.S.C. §§ 2401(b) and 2675(a); 42 U.S.C. § 233(g)
- Feres v. United States, 340 U.S. 135 (1950); 10 U.S.C. § 2733a
- S.C. Code § 15-79-110(6); David v. McLeod Regional Medical Center, 367 S.C. 242 (2006)
- S.C. Code §§ 15-51-10 and 15-51-20
- S.C. Code §§ 15-3-530(6) and 15-3-545
This page is general information about South Carolina law, not legal advice for your situation. Every case depends on its own facts.
