Happy Sunday!

I thought today we’d talk about the Health Care Directive, one of the foundational elements of estate planning.

Why?

Two reasons.

First, it’s one of the hardest documents to understand when you read it (why do lawyers have to make everything so complicated?!?).

Second, it’s one of the hardest choices to make because it makes the end of our lives very real.

Let’s break it down.

In English, the Health Care Directive (HCD) advises your Medical Power of Attorney (no one is actually named in the HCD) what you want to do if you are in a permanent vegetative state (aka brain dead).

The language describing the condition is outlined in paragraph (a) of the doc, and requires both of these conditions to be present for it to apply:

Terminal condition OR in a permanent unconscious condition; AND
Where the application of life sustaining treatment would serve only to artificially prolong the process of your dying.

The next two sentences in that paragraph define terminal condition and permanent unconscious condition.

What we’re talking about though is the situation where you are being kept alive by machines with no believed chance of recovering.

Now, having defined the condition we are talking about, the HCD asks you to make some decisions.

First, generally, do you want artificially provided nutrition and hydration, or not?

Once that choice is made, there are some more specific choices to make, with the goal being to provide direction to your Medical Power of Attorney, who will be tasked with telling the doctors what to do.

These are the choices (preface each with “if you are in this condition…”:

I do not want CPR.
I do not want mechanical respiration.
I do not want tube feeding.
I do not want tube hydration.
I do not want antibiotics.
I DO want maximum pain relief, even if it may hasten my death.

These are important decisions to make for three reasons:

First, it’s just generally a good idea to be treated the way you want;.

Second, it makes it basically impossible for anyone to dispute the choices (i.e. a family member that doesn’t want to pull the plug when you do).

And third, it provides certainty for your Medical Power of Attorney that they are doing what you want to do.

It’s not a long or complex document, but it’s really important.

Just like the rest of your plan. :)

Hope this helps explain the Health Care Directive.

Have a great week!

Sincerely,

Christopher Small
Owner
CMS Law Firm LLC

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