Who makes healthcare decisions for you if you can't?

Nobody, if you haven't put what you want in writing. That was the problem with Terri Schiavo's situation . . . who should the doctor or hospital listen to? Who should the court believe?

Somebody, but who knows who it will be? That's the problem with most "Living Will" forms: they do not have a space to name a specific person to act for you. And most "Living Wills" only cover situations where you're dying; what if a decision needs to be made about starting dialysis? A respirator? You're out of luck with most "Living Will" forms.

Who you want can make healthcare decisions for you, but only if you have a "Healthcare Power of Attorney," or similar document which has space for you to name a specific person... and backup people.

Other Living Will/Healthcare Power of Attorney hassles.

Aren't all the forms the same? Nope. They differ state to state. And certain documents may come from well-meaning websites and do gooders, but they don't do the job. Why don't you make sure you get the "real thing" which will do the job?

And there's something missing, too? H.I.P.A.A. is the Federal Act which protects your healthcare info from unauthorized sources. Unfortunately, who you named in a Living Will or Healthcare Power of Attorney isn't automatically an "authorized source." They need to get this info about you; so you need specific language or a document which meets the H.I.P.A.A rules for disclosure. Call and we'll describe.

I just got divorced/married; are my old papers okay? Under Georgia law, your old documents are gone. You need new ones.