Section 340.285

Title XXII OCCUPATIONS AND PROFESSIONS

Chapter 340

Effective - 28 Aug 2017   

  340.285.  Statute of limitations for malpractice, negligence, error, or mistake related to veterinary care of animals. — All actions against veterinarians treating animals and any other entity providing veterinary services for animals, and all employees of any of the foregoing acting in the course and scope of their employment, for damages for malpractice, negligence, error, or mistake related to the veterinary care of animals shall be brought within two years from the date of occurrence of the act of neglect complained of, except that:

  (1)  In cases in which the act of neglect complained of is introducing and negligently permitting any foreign object to remain within the body of a living animal, the action shall be brought within two years from the date of the discovery of such alleged negligence or from the date on which the owner of an animal in the exercise of ordinary care should have discovered such alleged negligence, whichever date occurs first; and

  (2)  In cases in which the act of neglect complained of is the negligent failure to inform, the action shall be brought within two years from the date of the discovery of such alleged negligent failure to inform or from the date on which the owner of the animal in the exercise of ordinary care should have discovered such alleged negligent failure to inform, whichever date first occurs; except that, no such action shall be brought for any negligent failure to inform about the results of medical tests performed more than two years before August 28, 2017.  For purposes of this subdivision, the act of neglect based on the negligent failure to inform the owner of the animal of the results of medical tests shall not include the act of informing the owner of the animal of erroneous test results.

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(L. 2017 S.B. 88)