Living Wills and Power of Attorney

Everyone needs to know about Living Wills and Power of Attorney. It's time to make your healthcare decisions now... before it's too late. You should set up your living #will, durable power of attorney for healthcare, and durable power of attorney for finances today.

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Time Stamps
0:00 Coronavirus affects spring holidays
0:09 April 16 is National Healthcare Decisions Day
0:28 How to prepare for healthcare decisions with living will and power of attorney
0:50 What is a Living Will?
1:14 What is a durable power of attorney for healthcare?
1:20 A durable power of attorney for healthcare is also known as a proxy directive
1:38 What’s the difference between a Living Will and durable power of attorney for healthcare?
1:57 It’s good to have a Living Will and durable power of attorney for healthcare
2:05 What is a durable power of attorney for finances?
2:17 How to set up a durable power of attorney
2:23 Exclusive survey reveals seniors more likely to plan for durable power of attorney for finances than their children think
3:05 The time to set up a living will and power of attorney is now

April 16 is National Healthcare Decisions Day. But if you haven't done so yet, you should set up your living #will, durable power of attorney for healthcare, and durable power of attorney for finances today, before it's too late.
Your living will informs your health care providers and family about your wishes regarding medical treatments in the event that you are not able to speak for yourself. This legal document will also be consulted if a physician has determined that you are unable to understand your diagnosis and therapeutic options.
Although living wills are helpful, they can’t cover every possible contingency. That’s why you also need a durable power of attorney for healthcare.
Also known as a proxy directive, a durable power of attorney for healthcare is a legal document that allows you to appoint a person to make healthcare decisions for you based upon your wishes in the event that you are not able to speak for yourself. Your durable power of attorney for healthcare, also known as a healthcare proxy, designates someone to make decisions for you.
If they are unsure of what you want in a specific situation, your healthcare representative would base their decision on what they believe is in your best interest.
What’s the difference? A living will expresses an individual's wishes regarding medical treatment. These wishes are to be followed if the individual is unable to provide instructions at the time medical decisions need to be made. The health care proxy gives the authority to another person to make medical decisions in the event that the patient cannot do so.
It is often beneficial to utilize both a living will and a health care proxy because you may be in a specific situation where the treating physician cannot interpret your living will.
Another durable power of attorney we recommend is for finances, which would allow someone to handle legal and financial decisions for the senior. One person could hold both positions for your money and your health.
First, decide who you want to represent you, and talk to them about your wishes. Then, speak to an attorney.
We recently had a power of attorney survey. We asked more than 1,300 seniors 65-and-up with grown kids about their crucial concerns including power of attorney for finances. We also surveyed more than 1,300 financially independent adult children of seniors on the same subjects.
While majorities of both groups indicated that the plan would be to authorize power of attorney, those in the older age group were far more likely to say so.
In addition, adult children were about twice as likely than people in their parents’ age group to report being unsure about their plans.
And only one senior out of 25 reported a flat-out No, much less than the children expected.
The pandemic has given most of us a lot more down time. Why not make the most of the time by preparing for the time you have left? Talk to your family about powers of attorney and preparing a living will.

Jeff Hoyt is SeniorLiving.org’s Editor-in-Chief.

For more on powers of attorney, visit https://www.seniorliving.org/law/durable-power-attorney/

For more on living wills, visit https://www.seniorliving.org/law/end-of-life-planning

For more on the power of attorney study, visit https://www.seniorliving.org/research/senior-financial-confidence-2020/

For more tips for seniors: https://www.seniorliving.org/

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