Please have your attorney review the law in Health and Safety Code Chapter 166 for the details. Medical Power of Attorney Form — Except to the extent you state otherwise, this document. Having trouble viewing or downloading a form? Free Printable Medical (Health Care) Power of Attorney Forms. Medical power of attorney allows a person to handle someone else’s health care decisions only in the chance that he or she may not be able to think for themselves.

• Medical Power Of Attorney Forms Free Download
• Medical Power Of Attorney Form
• Durable Power Of Attorney Forms Free P…

Table of Contents

1. Download a Free Blank Medical Power of Attorney Form

2. What is a Medical Power of Attorney (MPOA)?

A Medical Power of Attorney (MPOA) is a legal document that allows you to name a healthcare agent — someone who will make medical decisions in the event you become incapacitated and unable to communicate your wishes. Your agent will advocate for your care and ensure your medical wishes are followed.

$uicideboy$ paris download. By definition, a simple Medical Power of Attorney form will include the following key terms:

• Healthcare Agent: someone who is at least 18 years old that you trust and deem mentally competent enough to make healthcare decisions for you.

• Alternate Agent: someone who is authorized to make medical decisions on your behalf in the event your healthcare agent is unavailable or unable to make those decisions.

• Agent Authority: authority granted to a healthcare agent to make decisions in accordance with your personal values or that are in your best interest.

• Effective Authority: authority that can only be wielded after a doctor declares your inability to make your own healthcare decisions.

• Guardian: someone you nominate to be your legal guardian if required by court.

Also note that your state may refer to a Medical Power of Attorney form by a different name, such as:

• Health Care Proxy
• Health Care Power of Attorney (Healthcare POA)
• Durable Health Care Power of Attorney
• Medical Durable Power of Attorney
• Advance Health Care Directive

A Health Care Agent can also be referred to as an Attorney-in-Fact (AIF), Health Care Proxy, Patient Advocate, or Surrogate Decision Maker.

Difference Between a Medical Power of Attorney and a Living Will

While a simple Medical Power of Attorney allows you to designate an agent to make medical and end-of-life decisions on your behalf, a Living Will is a legal document that allows you to describe your medical care and end-of-life preferences in specific scenarios. For example, a Living Will may detail your instructions regarding:

• organ or tissue donation
• extended artificial life support
• resuscitation
• dialysis
• other medical treatments

Any instructions included in your Living Will must be followed by your healthcare providers, and can’t be influenced by your family or friends.

Unlike an MPoA, a Living Will does not appoint an agent to make decisions for you. Consequently, your loved ones and health care providers may be uncertain how to handle a scenario outside its established parameters.

Furthermore, a Living Will is only effective once you’ve been diagnosed as terminally ill, in a permanent state of unconsciousness, or a similar end-stage condition. This means your document is of no use if you become temporarilyincapacitated due to an unexpected illness or injury but are expected to recover.

Many states consolidate a Medical Power of Attorney and Living Will into a legal single document referred to as an Advance Healthcare Directive. This document empowers you to spell out your medical care and end-of-life preferences as well as appoint a healthcare agent to make decisions on your behalf.

Use our Medical Power of Attorney for a Child form to designate and authorize another person to make medical decisions for your child in your absence.

3. Who Should Have a Durable Health Care Power of Attorney?

All Americans 18+ years of age will benefit from creating a Durable Health Care Power of Attorney form.

It’s a common misconception that you only need a Medical Power of Attorney if you’re elderly or suffering from a terminal illness.

Unfortunately, life can be unpredictable. We all run the risk of suffering an unexpected illness or injury that could leave us unable to communicate our wishes.

Having a completed Healthcare POA form will ensure you receive the care you desire in such an event, and that someone you trust is advocating for your care.

You may be motivated to create a Medical Durable Power of Attorney if you are:

• Military personnel being deployed overseas
• Traveling abroad for an extended period of time
• Diagnosed with a chronic condition or life-threatening illness
• Getting married and want your spouse to have legal authority over your care
• Participating in extreme sports or activities that put your health at risk
• Engaged in a high-risk profession (i.e. emergency firefighter or police officer)
• Celebrating a milestone birthday

The Consequences of Not Having a Medical Power of Attorney

If you become incapacitated and don’t have a valid Medical Durable Power of Attorney, your loved ones will need to legally appoint a guardian to manage your medical decisions.

Unfortunately, this process wastes valuable time, and quickly racks up expensive legal fees. Furthermore, it can lead to conflict over who should be your guardian, as well as debate over what type of medical and end-of-life treatment you would have wanted.

Use our free Medical Power of attorney form to save your loved ones from uncertainty, legal hassle, and potential conflict.

4. How to Select Your Agent(s)

Selecting an agent for your Durable Medical Power of Attorney is a difficult decision that shouldn’t be taken lightly.

The majority of states require your agent to be 18+ years of age and mentally capable. Additionally, your agent should be a friend, family member, or professional who is:

• Knowledgeable of your religious and moral beliefs
• Emotionally capable of making difficult decisions on your behalf
• Willing to accept the responsibility of acting as your agent
• Available to consult with your physician(s) and make treatment decisions

Many states don’t allow an operator, administrator, or employee of a healthcare facility at which you’re a patient to act as your agent. Exceptions can be made if you’re related to the individual by blood or marriage.

Medical Power Of Attorney Forms Free Download

Can You Have More Than One Agent?

Most states allow you to select one or more alternate agents, also known as successor agents, in addition to your primary agent. Your alternate agent will assume decision making responsibility in the event your first choice is unwilling, unable, or unavailable to act as your agent.

Don’t worry, your Healthcare POA isn’t set in stone. If you change your mind, you can use a Revocation of Power of Attorney to make necessary modifications.

5. Your Agent’s Authority

Unless you include limitations in your Medical Power of Attorney form, your agent is able to make any and all healthcare decisions on your behalf.

In order to ensure your wishes are followed, consider specifying whether your agent is able to make the following decisions for you regarding:

• Mental Health Treatment
• Nursing Homes
• Artificial Nutrition and Hydration
• Release of Medical Records
• Medical Treatment
• Organ Donation

Supplement your Medical Power of Attorney with a Medical Records Release form to facilitate the release of information and avoid potential delays.

6. How to Complete Your Medical Power of Attorney Form

In order for your Medical Power of Attorney form to be legally-binding, it must comply with the signing requirements set forth by your state.

Most states require you to sign your Health Care Power of Attorney in the presence of either two witnesses or a notary public – and some states require both.

In addition, your state may impose restrictions on who can act as your witness. For example, individuals related to you by blood or marriage may be barred from signing your document as a witness.

Alternatively, select states have special witness requirements that you must follow if the circumstances apply to you. For example, if you’re a patient at a skilled nursing facility, you may be required to have a patient advocate or ombudsman serve as a special witness as you sign your Durable Health Care Power of Attorney.

To avoid creating an invalid Medical Power of Attorney, it’s crucial that you review the signing and witness requirements of your state.

What to do With Your Signed Medical Power of Attorney

Once you’ve certified your Medical Power of Attorney with the appropriate signature(s), you should file the original in your personal records and distribute copies of the document to:

• Your primary agent
• Your alternate agent(s)
• Your primary physician
• Residential care facilities you reside in
• Healthcare institutions at which you receive care
• Your loved ones

Additionally, you should consider keeping a copy of your Medical Power of Attorney with you at all times, such as in your purse or wallet, so that it can be easily accessed in an emergency. Always bring a copy of the document with you if you are admitted to the hospital, even for an outpatient procedure.

7. Health Care Power of Attorney
(Healthcare POA) State Laws

It’s important to note that each state has its own unique legislation regarding the creation, revocation, and validity of a Medical Durable Power of Attorney. You should review the legislation of the state in which you plan to execute your document and/or consult an attorney before drafting your form.

A Power of Attorney is a legal document that allows a person, referred to as the principal, to appoint another person, called the agent, to perform certain tasks for him or to make decisions for certain matters on his behalf when he is unable to do so for whatever reason. The agent will act as a proxy and put themselves in the principal’s shoes. There are various types of Power of Attorney Forms, depending on its purpose and limitations. You may browse the examples below, and even download them for free.

General Power of Attorney Form

Medical Power of Attorney Form

Durable Power of Attorney Form

Free Power of Attorney Form Sample

Health Care Power of Attorney

Types of Power of Attorney Forms

• General Power of Attorney Forms: This gives the agent the same rights and authority as you do. Like in a business, the agent can perform the tasks that you normally do. This has to be used with caution, and is advisable if you are not incapacitated but just need help with your tasks. This type of Power of Attorney (POA) expires, unless otherwise stated, once you pass away or are rendered incapacitated.
• Limited Power of Attorney Forms: This gives someone the power to act on your behalf for a very specific and limited purpose. For example, you are out of town and you need someone to sign a deed of property on your behalf. This usually has a limited effectivity as well, and expires at the time specified in the form.
• Durable Power of Attorney: This Power of Attorney Form can either be general or limited, but it remains in effect even after the principal becomes incapacitated. It only expires after the principal has passed away, or if it is revoked before the principal becomes incapacitated.
• Springing Power of Attorney: This is like the Durable Power of Attorney wherein it still remains even after the principal becomes incapacitated, but the difference is that it cannot be effective until the principal becomes incapacitated. Such is the case with a Medical or Health Care Power of Attorney.

Limited Power of Attorney Form

Medical Power Of Attorney Form

Business Power of Attorney Form

Educational Power of Attorney Form

Financial Power of Attorney Form

Durable Power Of Attorney Forms Free P…

• Medical Power of Attorney Forms: This is a Power of Attorney used to appoint someone to make healthcare decisions for you when you are mentally incapable of doing so. It usually goes hand in hand with a Living Will, which allows the principal to legally document his personal preferences for medical treatment.
• Financial Power of Attorney Form: This allows a person to appoint someone to make financial decisions for them. This is especially used in businesses, wherein the owner would be unable to perform his usual tasks due to an illness, injury, or when he would be out of the country.
• Educational Power of Attorney: This is used by a legally competent but incapacitated principal to appoint an agent, usually his parents, to perform certain tasks necessary in the educational setting, but should not include course work or activities related to the learning of the principal. This may include enrollment and accessing of school records among others.

There will always be a time when we will be unable to do our regular tasks and responsibilities. Whether you are ill, injured, mentally incapacitated, or just out of the country, it would be good to know that you have someone whom you trust to take care of things for you. But one thing to keep in mind when drafting a Power of Attorney is to consult a lawyer to make sure that your interests will be protected.