Planning Ahead: Advance Directives
We are celebrating National Elder Law Month throughout May. First we shared Partner Lisa Valente’s podcast from My Hometown Radio Show. Last week we looked at how Jay Leno is handling the challenges of caring for a wife suffering from dementia, and how planning ahead might have helped him. This week, we look at two very important Advance Directives that might have made Leno’s situation easier — the Power of Attorney and Health Care Proxy.
What are Advance Directives?
Advance Directives, such as Powers of Attorney and Health Care Proxies, are legal documents that allow individuals to specify their wishes should they become unable to make medical and financial decisions for themselves.
Power of Attorney: A Power of Attorney is an important legal document which allows someone else to legally act on your behalf with regard to financial decisions. The person who is chosen to act for you is called an agent. When you appoint an agent under a Power of Attorney it means that your agent can act for you in regard to the specific powers you have granted your agent under the Power of Attorney. The powers may be limited to a particular activity (such as closing the sale of a home) or may be broader. Your agent is required to act according to your wishes and directions and if the agent does not know your wishes, the agent is required to act in your best interests. With capacity, you can revoke your Power of Attorney at any time. The agent only has the power to act on your behalf while you are alive. At your death, the Power of Attorney is no longer valid.
A Power of Attorney is a vital estate and disability planning document that helps eliminate the need for an expensive and time-consuming guardianship court proceeding, and, if drafted properly, can be an extremely important Medicaid planning tool.
Health Care Proxy: A Health Care Proxy is a legal document that allows you to appoint someone, an agent, to make health care decisions for you if you lose the ability to make those decisions yourself. You may also appoint an alternate agent. You may give the person you select as much or as little authority as you want, and hospitals, doctors, and other health care providers must follow your agent’s decisions as if they were your own. A Health Care Proxy may be canceled at any time, and your agent can only make decisions based on your wishes. It’s very important to choose someone you trust who understands your desires regarding health care.
Both the Power of Attorney and the Health Care Proxy are important tools that can help you and your loved ones avoid costly and time-consuming legal action in the future. Don’t wait — get your Advance Directives prepared now, before you need them.
