Living Wills and Healthcare Directives: A Comparison
These two things are by few means the same. Power of attorney law is just the start to learning about healthcare proxies while a living will is document for specific situations that needs to be thought through seriously. You can have both implemented, but implementing both isn’t for everyone.
You need someone to be your proxy in order to have a healthcare proxy and some people don’t want to put definite answers to end-of-life questions on paper. Perhaps you know this, but estate planning is different for everyone.
That said, you’ll find an introduction on both things down below to help you understand each in its own right. You may want to seriously consider either option if you’re looking to avoid having someone act as your guardian. These are some of the best things to help supplement for the services that a guardian would otherwise provide. Both options are great choices. You just may want to prioritize one over the other depending on your needs.
Intro: Living Wills
Like most wills, a living will is a document that you create. However, rather than it being focused on your assets, this kind of will centers on your health. Just as you might use a regular will to explain what you want done with your assets, this kind of will lets you say what you want done with your body. This document exists to help let medical professionals know how you want to be cared for.
Usually this document, nonetheless, becomes active only when you are either incapacitated or terminally ill. Any specifics that you have surrounding end-of-life care probably should be put in this document. Once you put this info into writing and finalize everything, whatever doctors are caring for you will probably go on that information. Don’t assume that anyone will take your words as suggestions. Family and friends may take your words at face value, assuming that you want everything carried out as you say.
Introduction: Healthcare Proxy
Durable medical power of attorney is really what you’re getting into when it comes to this subject. Healthcare proxies are what you want if you’re looking for someone else to make healthcare decisions for you. Durable power of attorney is different from other forms of power of attorney in that it lasts even when you become incapacitated. There’s also a subcategory called springing durable power of attorney which only activates once incapacitation becomes a reality.
While you may want to make suggestions of what’s going to happen to you, giving someone durable medical power of attorney means they’ll be able to make those decisions for you. When they can start making those decisions, in light of springing durable POA, is up to you. If they don’t become incapacitated themself, it’s possible that your family might not need a guardian to take care of you. This isn’t to replace a conservatorship, but the medical questions should be able to be managed by someone once the proxy has their power.
Document Alone
A living will might mean that you don’t need someone else involved with your healthcare decision-making. Mind you, you may not be able to go too in-depth with it, something that you should be mindful of if you’re looking for an answer to common medical situations. It’s mainly a document that will try to tell the people caring for you how you want to be cared for towards the end of your life. You may even want to treat each question that you come across in your living will as a yes or no question because if it comes down to it, your answers may be how the doctors handle your life.
While having someone act as your healthcare directive may help doctors in complex situations, living wills are sometimes for more specific answers. At least, they enable you to answer questions directly. But don’t forget that not every state will use a living will as the final answer to what’s to be done. Though, whatever you put in it will probably have a higher likelihood of happening. Act like whatever goes into this document will be what happens to you.
Another Person
As for healthcare proxies, you might be involving another person into your medical decision making. That includes all the emotions and beliefs that they carry with them. The decisions that they make, nonetheless, are required by law to be the ones that they think you would make. You can talk through any hypothetical medical decision you can think of and making someone your proxy doesn’t mean forfeiting your ability to make these kinds of decisions. The person you chose is meant to be your servant who carries out your wishes.
A proxy can work alongside of your living will, but keep in mind that the proxy only has to go on what you give them. Whatever you don’t discuss will have to be decided upon by them. They’re the ones who have final say when your family can’t make a decision. If you have serious spiritual or religious concerns with what kind of treatment will be used on you, your proxy can also voice those concerns. At the same time, you must be completely comfortable with allowing your proxy to make such decisions in place of you. Living wills are for specifics and healthcare proxies are for handling matters that your living will doesn’t cover.
Minnesota Estate Planning Lawyers
Healthy or fighting off a condition, it’s always worth to prepare for a medical emergency. And preparing for that emergency doesn’t always involve getting a first aid kit. If you have interest in either of the above options, consider speaking to someone from Flanders Law Firm LLC.
Someone can help you when you call them at 612-424-0398.
Power of attorney law is a great place to start to help you prepare for the worst. While these decisions may not do much to affect your health in the short term, they may come up down the road. This means anticipating and predicting what might happen to you and how the people helping you should assist in response to what takes place.
Sources
https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/living-wills-and-health-care-proxies
