A crucial part of any estate plan involves a Living Will and selecting a Power of Attorney. Those two legal documents outline your health care directives to ensure everyone follows your wishes (even if you can’t make the decision yourself). A Living Will explains your wishes for medical treatments and any other related concerns. In comparison, a Power of Attorney is someone you choose to act on your behalf either; 1). while you are capacitated or 2).it can only be used once your lack mental capacity and are unable to make decisions yourself.
Continue reading to learn more about Pennsylvania’s Living Will and Power of Attorney documents and when you should get them.
What is a Living Will?
A PA Living Will is a formal, legal document that explicitly lists your medical wishes. Your wishes can include:
- End-of-life medical care
- Pain management
- Organ donation
- CPR and DNR options
- Tube feeding
- Ventilation
- Any other concerns related to medical care
It’s important to know that a Living Will differs from a Last Will and Testament. Learn more about Pennsylvania’s Last Will and Testament here.
Benefits of a Living Will
- Provides helpful information for your family and medical doctors
- Outlines your wishes if you’re incapacitated
- Allows you to refuse specific treatments
- Prevents potential arguments among family members
- Guarantees doctors follow your wishes
- Gives you peace of mind
What is a Durable Healthcare Power of Attorney?
A PA Power of Attorney (POA) Agent is a person you select to make medical decisions, if you incapacitated or capicated. Yes, most everyone thinks of when they are acted upon, it is under dire and stressful circumstance. If you choose to have a flexible Durable Healthcare Power-of-Attorney, regardless of your mental capacity, your Agent can call and get your test results. He or she can request a medication refill. Think of those yearly things everyone has to do like paying for insurance, getting a car registered etc. When you work with an Estate Planning lawyer, you can determine how much control you give your agent. For example, you can limit their power (only allowing them to make certain decisions) or give them flexibility to handle all of your medical affairs..
Benefits of a POA
- Provides you the option to select who makes your decisions instead of the court appointing someone
- Allows you to explain your wishes and desires to someone openly
- Avoids disputes with multiple family members trying to make decisions on your behalf
- Gives you peace of mind
At What Age Do I Need a PA Living Will and Power of Attorney?
Once a person is 18 years old, there’s no set age of when to create a PA Living Will or Durable Healthcare Power of Attorney. The sooner you have one in place, the better because you can’t predict if you’ll ever need to make decisions on your behalf. Once you know your medical wishes, you should draft a Living Will and select a POA. You can always change it later in life.
Once you’re planning for retirement, if you don’t already have one, you should create a Living Will and select a POA. Mainly because you’re already preparing for your estate and assets during this time in your life, and your medical wishes should be included in that list.
Do I Need Both a Living Will and Power of Attorney?
Yes.. A Living Will clearly explains what care and/or medical decisions when there is no reasonable likelihood of you surviving a major injury like a car accident or there is no reasonable likelihood you will survive a major illness like cancer. Whereas there could be a situation that your Living Will doesn’t address, and a POA can step in to fulfill that role. (You can either say your agent must follow your instructions or that they know what you want to have happened and listen to them. I’m not a fan of the listen to them. I can think of maybe less than 4 people that have wanted it that way. I would take that out.)
Most attorneys and I am one of them that does not put both healthcare and financial POAs in one document. Do you want the financial one here too or just the healthcare?
Are You Ready to Prepare for Your Future?
If you’re ready to secure your future wishes and make situations easier on your family, you’ll want to work with an Estate Planning attorney. Auld Brothers Law Group is a Pittsburgh Estate Planning law firm that offers legal services to help you prepare for the future and your current situation. Our team will listen to you and discuss your options to find a solution that works best for you and your family.
Contact us to learn more about our services or schedule a free, 30-minute consultation.