Advance Directives and Powers of Attorney
Advance Directives and Powers of Attorney
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n advance directive helps to ensure that your healthcare wishes will be respected if you can’t speak or communicate. It is usually a written, legal document. If you don’t have a written document, you may express your wishes verbally to your family members or healthcare agent. It is wise to have an advance directive in case you become severely injured or ill and cannot participate in decisions about your health and medical care. Living wills and medical powers of attorney are types of advance directives.
Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA)
Allegheny County Medical Society
Guardianships
713 Ridge Avenue Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15212 (412) 321-5030 www.acms.org
To qualify for a guardian, a person must be impaired in such a way that he is partially or totally unable to manage financial resources or meet essential physical health or safety requirements. Stringent standards apply. A petition must be filed when a guardian is necessary.
ACMS’ website is a good resource for healthcare-related information. A living wills / healthcare power of attorney form can be downloaded for free from the site. Click on the “patient resources” tab from the home page.
Living Wills
Neighborhood Legal Services Association (NLSA) 928 Penn Ave. Pittsburgh, PA 15222 (412) 255-6700 (866) 761-6572 www.nlsa.us
NLSA’s Elder Law Project provides legal assistance and representation to adults ages 60 and older who may be victims of physical, emotional or financial abuse. They also assist with health care planning and alternatives to guardianship. Their Older and Wiser seminars present free legal information designed to help older adults and their families plan for matters of crucial importance in later life. NLSA does not handle criminal matters and does not assist with wills. NLSA provides various types of assistance to clients whose DPW benefits (cash, Medical, special allowances, food stamps) are being terminated. Other matters in which NLSA provides assistance include: • disability law issues that arise for those living with disabilities. • employment law that addresses disputes in the workplace such as worker’s rights, sexual harassment, workplace safety, unemployment compensation and the Family and Medical Leave Act. • housing issues related to the landlord-tenant relationship, as well as utility assistance. • legal assistance to eligible veterans who are having problems with housing, utilities or other issues. • Immigration law.
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2013 Allegheny County Senior Resource Guide
This written document authorizes an agent to handle certain types of transactions. General powers of attorney are broad and allow many types of transactions. Conversely, limited powers of attorney are for a specific task. The power of attorney is “durable” because it remains valid even after the person no longer has legal capacity to handle transactions, possibly due to an injury or illness. All powers of attorney executed since 1993 in Pennsylvania are durable unless stated otherwise.
Also called a treatment directive, a living will lists your wishes about end-of-life medical treatment. It is used if you no longer have the ability to make decisions or communicate. A living will can be written so as to refuse life-sustaining treatment if the maker is incompetent and either in a terminal condition or a state of permanent unconsciousness.
Medical Power of Attorney
This legal document lets you appoint someone (usually called a healthcare agent or proxy) to make decisions about your medical care. You can create an advance directive at any time and change it whenever you wish. You should share copies with your primary care physician and family. Make sure your family knows where your advance directive is located, and give a copy to your healthcare proxy. For more information on writing an advance directive, visit www.webMD.com and type “advance directive” in the search box.
Trusts
A trust is similar to a box where you place property, except a person places money in a brokerage or bank account and designates a manager referred to as the “trustee.” The trustee distributes trust assets to the beneficiaries that you select. Your attorney might recommend a trust if you have a large estate, an estate with young beneficiaries or in situations with special circumstances.
Wills
A will is an important legal document and the cornerstone of most estate plans. In a will, you direct how your property is to be distributed and you name a personal representative to administer your estate. The executor collects the estate assets, pays the estate debts and makes distributions to the beneficiaries you have designated. It is generally advisable to nominate one executor and an alternate in your will rather than naming two individuals to serve as co-executors.