Put Your Wishes on Paper Series - Part 3

We’re closing out our essential estate planning document series this week by discussing the last two important documents; a healthcare representation and a living will. A Healthcare Representation may also be called a Healthcare Power of Attorney. This document’s purpose is to designate a representative to make medical decisions on your behalf should you become incapacitated and unable to make decisions on your own. You can also allow your healthcare representative full access to your medical record without HIPAA restriction, making it easier to make informed decisions about your medical care. As with your durable power of attorney, be sure to choose someone trustworthy for this role.

The purpose of the last document in the series, a Living Will, is to ensure that if you become terminally ill and need to be on life support to keep you alive, you have written out wishes as to whether you would like to be kept alive with artificial food and hydration, not kept alive, or if you would like your healthcare representative to make the decision for you. If you choose the last option, be sure your representative knows what you want and that they will be in charge of this decision.

Keep in mind, once you become an adult at age 18, your parents nor your spouse can legally serve as a power of attorney or a healthcare representative, unless you’ve signed legal documents indicating this is what you want. If you have a big life change, like the birth of a child, a divorce, or you’ve moved out of state it’s usually best to refresh or update all four of your documents (and named beneficiaries) as soon as possible. As a reminder, when you are considering who to name as an executor, guardian to your children or pets, or as a healthcare power of attorney, make sure you choose someone you trust. These can be all the same person, or you can name different people. Make your wishes known to whomever you choose, so they’re not caught off guard in what could be an already difficult situation.

- Margaret Gooley, CFP®, CDFA®, Worley Erhart-Graves Financial Advisors