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Understanding the Medical Power of Attorney
Are you worried about how your medical affairs will be handled if you become too ill to handle them yourself? Have you thought about drafting a medical power of attorney to help give you some peace of mind? In this article we will provide a brief description of a medical power of attorney, including which affairs might be handed over should you become unable to see to them yourself.
Power of Attorney at a Glance
As you probably know, power of attorney is a legal document that gives another person, whom you designate, “power” over your affairs. This person thence becomes known as your agent, giving him or her powers that can range from handling your banking transactions and bills, to buying and selling real estate. There are many reasons why one may need a power of attorney, but perhaps the most common reason is if you become too ill to handle your medical decisions for yourself. This type of document is known as a medical power of attorney.
The Medical Power of Attorney
A medical power of attorney, also known as a health care power of attorney, is a legally binding document that permits you to name a designee—also called an “agent”—to handle all of your health care decisions should you become either unconscious, mentally incompetent, or are otherwise unable to handle making these decisions on your own due to serious illness.
This document is different than other types of power of attorney in that it only permits your agent to make medical decisions for you, which could include, at your wish, whether or not you would like to receive life-sustaining services should you fall into a permanent coma or you become terminally ill. The document can be tailored to meet your individual situation, and because you can spell out all of your personal preferences with regard to healthcare beforehand, it will undoubtedly provide a sense of direction—and relief—to the agent you designate, knowing that the decisions they are making on your behalf are merely the directions you have laid out for them.
Contrary to popular belief, a medical power of attorney and a living will are not the same thing. While a medical power of attorney allows you to appoint someone to make medical decisions for you, a living will only represents your wishes with regard to life-sustaining procedures. Both of these documents, however, fall into a classification known as “advance care directives,” and both are legally binding documents.
Nobody enjoys thinking of a time when they will no longer be capable of making their own medical decisions, but with a medical power of attorney you can ensure that the person making these decisions for you in a difficult time is someone you wholly trust to carry out your wishes.