Your health care power of attorney is an essential part of your estate plan. Every person, age 18 or older, needs his or her own health care power of attorney. The purpose is to authorize a trusted family member or friend to make health care decisions on your behalf if you are not able to make these decisions yourself.
You help yourself and your family by having a health care power of attorney in place. You choose who you would like to assist you and sleep well at night, knowing your needs will be met.
And, your family also has peace of mind and doesn’t have to go to court for a conservatorship process. Conservatorships are stressful, inconvenient, expensive, time consuming and public.
Here are 5 powers they may be authorized by your health care power of attorney:
- Access to your medical records
- Open communications with your medical personnel
- All health care decision making such as the hiring and firing of doctors or therapists and consent to medical treatment.
- Anatomical gift
- Funeral planning and burial arrangements
In addition, you have the option of making some health care decisions in advance through an advanced medical directive. Commonly advanced medical directives include end of life medical decisions (i.e. if you don’t want to be hooked up to machines) and organ donation.
If you choose to have an advanced medical directive and make medical decisions in advance, your health care agent under your health care power of attorney cannot override your decision but will make all other decisions.
During the estate planning process, we will design your medical power of attorney, naming trusted loved ones to assist you when you need it most. Please feel free to call our office at 858-792-5988 to schedule your estate planning consultation. We look forward to working with you.