“While a general POA is used to grant business decision-making authority, a health care POA (“H-POA”) governs health and medical decision-making authority.”
Selecting someone to make health care decisions for you when you are unable, requires a great deal of trust and is considered by many to be the most important estate planning tool, according to The Daily News in “Choose Health Care Power of Attorney Carefully.”
The Durable Health Care Power of Attorney—H-POA—is similar to the general POA in that both can be used to provide your representative with either very broad or very limited acting authority. However, they are also very different. The H-POA can be drafted to retain its effectiveness, while you are alive and after you pass away.
The critical thing about an H-POA is the ability to tell the person you chose of your wishes about many different types of health and medical decisions. You can tell him or her exactly what medical treatments are acceptable to you or which you do not want to be used. That includes surgical intervention, autopsies, resuscitation, life support, organ donations and even whether to donate your body or specific portions of your body to science, medicine or education.
A less dramatic part of your H-POA concerns your representative’s right to access and disclose medical records.
The H-POA is a critical document that may make a life-or-death impact for you. In addition to selecting a person who you trust and count on to act as you wish, even if it is against their values, you’ll want to select an estate planning attorney who can create the document to achieve your health and medical wishes.
You do retain the right to revoke or change your H-POA at any time. You can do so verbally, by notifying your agent or your healthcare provider. It may be better to do this in writing. You can also draft a new H-POA, which revokes any previously written documents.
However you chose to revoke the H-POA, make sure that your representative and estate planning attorney know that you wish to do this. This should be done in writing to avoid any misunderstandings or confusion.
If you use an H-POA, remember that it supersedes the directions and wishes of anyone except you: that includes your wife, your children, your next of kin and your healthcare provider.
If you chose to have lifesaving care, your agent cannot tell your doctor to withhold care.
You should also tell your spouse, next of kin and any children that you have named someone to the position of H-POA. Make sure to also tell that person, so it is not a surprise to them. They may choose not to take on the responsibility, so be prepared with a contingent person.
Talk with an estate planning attorney to make sure these documents are drafted carefully and correctly.
Resource: The Daily News (Memphis) July 25, 2018 “Choose Health Care Power of Attorney Carefully”
“雖然一般的授權書用於授予業務決策權，醫療保健授權書（“H-POA”）則管理健康和醫療決策權。”
選擇某人在您無法做出醫療決定時做你的健康代理人需要很大的信任，並被許多人認為是最重要的資產規劃工具，據每日新聞報導“Choose Health Care Power of Attorney Carefully.” (謹慎選擇醫療保健授權書)
醫療保健授權書與普通授權書類似，因為它們都可以用來為您的代表提供非常廣泛或非常有限的代理權限。
關於醫療保健授權書的關鍵是能夠告訴，你的代理人你自己對許多不同類型的健康和醫療決定的意望。你可以準確地告訴他或她您接受哪些醫學治療或你不想使用哪種治療方法。這包括外科手術，解剖，復甦，生命支持，器官捐贈，甚至是否將您的身體或身體的特定部位捐獻給科學，醫學或教育。
你的醫療保健授權書不那麼引人注目的部分涉及你的代表取得和透露醫療記錄的權利。
醫療保健授權書是一份關鍵文件，可能會對你造成生死攸關的影響。除了選擇一個你信任並按你的意願行事的人，即使這樣的是違背了他們的價值觀，你還需要選擇一個資產規劃律師來起草文件以滿足你的健康和醫療願望。
你確實保留隨時撤銷或更改醫療保健授權書的權利。你可以通過口頭通知您的代理人或你的醫療保健提供者這樣做。書面通知可能會更好。你還可以起草新的醫療保健授權書，撤銷之前編寫的任何文件。
但是，在你選擇撤銷醫療保健授權書，請確保你的代表和資產規劃律師知道你希望這樣做。這應該以書面形式進行，以避免任何誤解或混淆。
如果你使用醫療保健授權書，請記住它取代除您之外的任何人的指示和願望：包括你的妻子，你的孩子，你的近親以及你的醫療保健提供者。
如果你選擇了救命護理，你的代理人不能告訴你的醫生不要做這種護理。
您還應該告訴您的配偶，最近親或已任命為健康代理人的子女。一定要告訴那個人，這樣對他們來說並不意外。他們可能選擇不承擔責任，因此準備一名後備代理人。
與資產規劃律師交談，確保這些文件是經過認真和正確的草案。
參考: The Daily News (Memphis) July 25, 2018 “Choose Health Care Power of Attorney Carefully”