Best Way to Obtain a Doctor’s Note: Instructions and Examples

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Everyone loves a day or two off work or school, right? Well, if the reason for your little “vacation” is an illness, injury, or some other medical condition, that kind of saps the fun out of the whole thing. What’s even worse is when your employer or school administration decides to penalize you, withhold pay, or even threaten to fire you or expel you because of the days you missed. Yuck! But there’s some good news: if you can obtain a medical excuse note from your doctor that covers the days you were absent, you can take the recovery time you need and not receive any negative backlash. Here’s how you do it.

Medical Excuse Notes Key Components

How to Fill Out a Medical Excuse Note for Work or School

Make an appointment with a doctor as soon as you start to feel sick or become injured. We know it’s difficult to see a doctor on short notice or if you’re feeling too poorly to leave home. If seeing a physician in-person isn’t feasible, schedule a virtual appointment using a service like TelaDoc or MDLIVE, and the doctor who visits with you over the phone can send you an excuse note electronically.

Tell your doctor about your medical issue and undergo an examination. Your doctor must verify the problem and determine the best course of treatment. This is important because the nature of the treatment and your estimated recovery time will dictate how long you’ll need to be absent.

Ask the doctor or their staff to fill out and sign a medical excuse note. Do this as soon as possible after the examination, so neither you nor your doctor forget about it. In some instances, the doctor may ask you when you would prefer to return to work or school. In that case, choose a date that you believe you will be able to recover sufficiently by to resume your regular duties or attend classes. If your doctor believes you can return to work or school right away, but you disagree, find another doctor and get a second opinion. Otherwise, you’ll have to negotiate absences without the benefit of a medical excuse note.

Make a copy of the note and provide the original to your workplace or school. Keep a record of all medical records associated with your visit, as well, in case they decide to investigate further. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) allows covered employers to contact a worker's doctor and ask for additional information about their health or disability if the inquiry is related to the job and shown to be a business necessity.

Medical Excuse Note Examples

A real doctor’s note lists the date and time of your appointment, day of release, conditions on your return to work or school, and doctor’s signature. Conditions include weight lifting limits and restriction of duties, and your employer or school must accommodate them for the length of time the doctor specifies. Work Example: “To whom it may concern: John Doe is excused from work from October 16th through October 18th, 2024 due to a medical condition as evaluated by this office. He may return to work on October 21st, 2024, and assume light duty. He may not lift more than 30 pounds of weight until November 1st, 2024.” School Example: “Dear [name of principal or school administrators], Elsa Mae is excused from school for April 14th, 2024 due to a visit she made to this office. She may return to school on April 15th, 2024, and resume her normal classes and after-school activities.”

Can you use a fake medical excuse note template?

A genuine doctor’s note requires a doctor’s signature, meaning you would need to forge one if you’re writing it yourself. That’s called forgery and is against the law! Medical excuse note forgers who are caught could face up to 1 year in prison, 3 years of probation, and $1000 in penalties.

When your employer or their insurer calls the doctor to authenticate the medical excuse note, they will discover you lied. At that point, they may take action against you, such as suspending or firing you.

Schools can punish students who forge fake doctor’s notes by suspending them or even expelling them. Regardless, the incident will remain a black mark on the student’s record and follow them to any other schools they attend afterward.

Situations to Use a Medical Excuse Note

A yearly checkup or health screening. Monitoring and maintaining your health is important and worth missing a day or two from your job or class. Don’t skip your regular checkups or screenings for diseases like cancer. Instead, ask for a doctor’s note verifying you attended your appointment and prove you weren’t playing hooky that day.

An illness or injury that temporarily prevents you from being able to complete any work or school-related tasks. If you have a nasty cold or some other minor issue knocking you off your feet, get a doctor’s note so you can stay home and recover.

A highly contagious disease like COVID-19, influenza, or strep throat. Your principal or employer will be glad you decided to stay home if you come down one of these super spreaders. They may also require a doctor’s note showing you’re cleared to return to work or school.

A serious health condition requiring you to reduce stress and physical activity. This could be a pregnancy, chronic back condition, diabetes, cancer, or something else that is worsened by strenuous tasks. Employees or employee family members whose illnesses fall under the Family and Medical Leave Act’s (FMLA) definition of “serious health conditions” are entitled to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave every 12 months (providing their employer is covered).

Benefits of Getting a Real Medical Excuse Note

You may be able to avoid getting suspended, fired, or expelled over missing work or school. Remember to check your employer or school’s absence policies to ensure a doctor’s note is sufficient documentation to excuse your missed days.

You may get paid for the time you took off for medical reasons. Federal law doesn’t require employers to provide sick leave, so talk to your human resources department to find out if you’re entitled to pay on the days you’re absent due to illness. If so, they may require you to provide a medical excuse note to prove you took time off for a legitimate reason.

You can treat and recover from medical issues during business and school days. Most doctor’s offices are only open from Monday-Friday, so being able to take off during these times by acquiring a medical excuse note is crucial.

It’s legal and you can easily obtain it. All it takes is making a virtual or in-person appointment with a doctor and asking them or their staff for a medical excuse note. Even better, you won’t risk being charged with forgery as you would with a fake note.

Medical Excuse Note Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Do employers verify medical excuse notes? Yes, both your employer and their insurer can call the office where you obtained your doctor’s note to verify the note’s authenticity. They can’t, however, ask them for details of your visit without your prior authorization, as that would be a violation of HIPAA privacy law.

Do you always have to provide a medical excuse note when you’re sick? Not always. Some employers only require a note after 3 days of absence. Check with the HR department at your workplace or your school administrator’s office to see if they require a doctor’s note for sick days.

Can you get a medical excuse note for dental appointments and elective procedures? Yes, anytime you visit a doctor or a qualified healthcare provider, you can ask for a note to excuse your absence from work or school for medical purposes.

Do you need a medical excuse note for military-related absences? In this case, the military will provide an official excuse for you to show your employer or school. You don’t need to get a note from a doctor.