Advance Health Care Directive
We all want to live long lives full of vitality. When the end comes, we hope it will be a long time from now and that it will not be drawn-out and painful. It is difficult for many of us to picture ourselves struggling with a debilitating illness or condition. Of course, we cannot know what is in store. For many of us, our final years will not be what we hoped for. There are, however, ways to take some control over our lives if we become incapacitated.
An Advance Health Care Directive is a legal document that can outline your wishes upon various forms of incapacity. If you have an advance health care directive, you can dictate what procedures you want taken upon your incapacity, give directions to health care professionals, and designate who you want making decisions for you. In sum, an advance health care directive can be of great assistance and guidance to you and your loved ones during a potentially difficult time. (Another legal document that can be beneficial is an HIPAA waiver. This document will allow certain trusted individuals to get information about your medical condition.)
The advance health care directive is commonly known as a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care Decisions. This document authorizes your agent to obtain your medical records. It is important to have an Advance Health Care Directive that has recently been signed, because many hospitals will disregard older documentation for fear of being entangled in a lawsuit.
Even if your Advance Healthcare Directive is currently effective, you should still have us draft a new one that, that among other things, authorizes your agent to disclose your health information to the trustee of your trust.
The advance health care directive is commonly known as a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care Decisions. This document authorizes your agent to obtain your medical records. It is important to have an Advance Health Care Directive that has recently been signed, because many hospitals will disregard older documentation for fear of being entangled in a lawsuit.
There are some additional concerns with the Advance Health Care Directive. It is important that it is currently effective, and not effective only upon your incapacity. Even if your Advance Healthcare Directive is currently effective, you should still have us draft a new one that, that among other things, authorizes your agent to disclose your health information to the trustee of your trust and to authorize your trustee to disclose your health information to your banks, brokerage firms, escrow companies, accountant, etc.
Advance Health Care Directive
What is an Advance Health Care Directive? Watch this video to gain a deeper understanding.