Time to Review Your Health Care Power of Attorney and Living Will

Planning for the future of a farm involves much more than deciding who will operate the business or inherit the land. It also means making decisions about your personal care if you cannot speak for yourself. Few topics are harder to consider than end-of-life treatment, but addressing them in advance can save loved ones from confusion and  conflict at a difficult time. Two legal documents are especially important for these decisions: the Health Care Power of Attorney and the Living Will Declaration.

The Health Care Power of Attorney

A Health Care Power of Attorney (HCPOA) is a document that allows you to appoint another person, your agent, to make health care decisions for you if you cannot. Ohio law gives your agent authority to act just as you could, unless you specifically limit that authority.

With an HCPOA in place, your agent may:

• Schedule and cancel medical appointments.
• Communicate directly with doctors and nurses.
• Choose among treatment options.
• Decide where you receive care, including long-term care.

The document can also contain instructions about life support. For example, you may authorize your agent to refuse artificially supplied nutrition or hydration if you are permanently unconscious. Importantly, your HCPOA only takes effect if a doctor determines that you have lost the ability to make informed health care decisions. Until then, you remain fully in control.  You may revoke or change your HCPOA at any time before death, and it terminates upon death.

The Living Will

While an HCPOA puts decisions in the hands of a trusted agent, a Living Will Declaration communicates your own choices directly to your doctor. It applies only if you are either:

• In a terminal condition (an irreversible, untreatable condition from which recovery is not possible), or
• In a permanently unconscious state (an irreversible condition in which you are permanently unaware of yourself or your surroundings).

If two physicians confirm one of these conditions, your Living Will directs your doctor to provide only comfort and pain management care and to allow you to die naturally. It tells your doctor not to use CPR, ventilators, or artificial nutrition and hydration.

Do You Need Both?

Ohio law allows individuals to have both an HCPOA and a Living Will, but a Living Will is optional. If your HCPOA includes clear instructions about life support, you may feel that a Living Will is unnecessary. On the other hand, some people prefer to state their wishes in writing through a Living Will so there is no doubt about their preferences.

If you choose to have both documents, make sure they do not conflict with one another. Contradictions can create confusion for health care providers and family members at the worst possible time.

Reviewing and Updating Your Documents

Advance directives are not one-and-done paperwork. They should be reviewed regularly, especially when there are major life or family changes. Ask yourself:

• Do I still trust the person I appointed as my agent?
• Does my HCPOA reflect my current wishes about life support?
• If I have both an HCPOA and Living Will, are they consistent?
• Do my loved ones know where to find these documents?

As farms transition to the next generation, reviewing these documents should be part of the planning process. Just as you would update your will or business agreement, updating your health care directives ensures your wishes are clear and enforceable.

Communicating Your Plans

Even the best-drafted documents cannot do their job if no one knows they exist. Consider sharing copies of your HCPOA and Living Will with:

• The people you have appointed as agents.
• Your doctors and medical providers.
• Family members who may be present in a crisis.

Talk openly with your family about your choices. They may not agree, but knowing your decisions ahead of time will reduce stress and help prevent conflict.

Standardized Forms Are Available

Ohio’s medical and legal communities have worked together to create standardized forms for the Health Care Power of Attorney and Living Will. These forms are widely accepted by doctors, hospitals, and attorneys in Ohio, and they are available online at no cost. While it is possible to complete the forms on your own, farm families should consider working with an attorney to ensure the documents are done correctly and coordinated with the rest of their estate and transition plans.

This article has been reposted from the Farm Office Blog. To view the original article, click HERE.