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Health Care Power of Attorney (Advance Directive) self help forms

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A Health Care Power of Attorney is a kind of advance care directive. 

It enables a person to authorize someone else in advance to manage your medical treatment if you are unable to make and communicate personal health care decisions.  Another form of an advance care directive is a Living Will.  With a Living Will you make a written statement of your instructions regarding your personal health care preferences, but no agent is appointed.  Experts recommend that you prepare both a Health Care Power of Attorney and a Living Will.

Your state legislature dictates how a Health Care Power of Attorney must be prepared and signed to be legally valid.  Our forms have been prepared to adhere to the most current laws and provisions for your state of residency.  When state statutes allow, some of our forms have been prepared to serve as both a Living Will and Health Care Power of Attorney.

State rules for validating, signing and witness requirements are provided upon purchase.

Form Selection:

Select the state you wish your Advance Directive to be effective.

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Why do you  need a Health Care Power of Attorney?

Advances in medicine now make it possible to sustain life indefinitely.  The cost of these life-sustaining procedures is extreme and the quality of life is most often depressingly low.  Without appropriate advance directives, health care providers may not be willing to withdraw these life-sustaining procedures and permit a natural death.

A Health Care Power of Attorney most commonly is used to ensure that expensive, extraordinary life prolonging measures will not be used, but it is not limited to this purpose only.  You can also state in an advance directive that you desire to employ life-sustaining procedures, even if the chances for recovery are poor.  Many of the statutory forms include optional provisions to make these kinds of directions.

Compared to a Living Will.

A Health Care Power of Attorney and Living Will do two different, but related, things.  With a Health Care Power of Attorney, an agent ("proxy" or "attorney in fact") is appointed to act on your behalf and is authorized to make your personal health care decisions when you are unable.  With most Living Wills, you make a written statement of your instructions regarding your personal health care preferences, but no agent is appointed.  When states allow, many of our pre-drafted forms have been prepared to serve as both a Living Will and Health Care Power of Attorney. 

How a Health Care Power of Attorney works!

A Health Care Power of Attorney is a "durable" power of attorney.  This means that, unlike a normal

"non-durable" power of attorney, the powers you grant are not extinguished if you become legally incapacitated or unable to communicate your medical decisions.  Until you become unable to communicate health care decisions for yourself, you retain full power of authority to manage your personal health care.  The powers in the document become effective only if you suffer a condition that "triggers" the powers, when you are no longer able to act for yourself.

Important Tip!

If you spend much or most of your time in another state, you may consider preparing another document for that state as well.  A Health Care Power of Attorney or Living Will is only valid for the state in which it was written.  A person can have more than one Health Care Power of Attorney or Living Will.

Getting started!

To create a Health Care Power of Attorney, you must first select a person to be your agent. You should also appoint at least one alternate to serve in case the person you have named in unable or unwilling to serve.  Discuss your desires with your agent and alternates to make sure each fully understands your wishes and is willing to carry them out.  If you have a Living Will, provide your agent a copy and discuss your preferences stated in that document.

Most states have some rules regarding who may create a Health Care Power of Attorney.  In nearly every state, you must be an adult and of sound mind.

State law usually includes some rules concerning who may be a health care agent. 

These rules are provided with our forms for each state upon purchase.

State laws also dictate how your Health Care Power of Attorney must be signed. 

The correct format and instructions for this are provided with all our forms.

Experts suggest you prepare and sign at least four originals of your Health Care Power of Attorney. All four need to be individually signed.  Don't just sign one and photocopy it - a court may refuse to uphold a photocopy.  You keep one original, your agent keeps one, your alternate agent keeps one, and the last goes to your physician.  You may also want to do others for your lawyer, family members or clergy.  Also give a copy to anyone who has a copy of your Living Will.