We understand that after completing your will document, you may want to be finished thinking about the depressing topic of your eventual passing. However, we encourage you not to neglect making plans for when you are still alive, in the hypothetical, and still saddening, scenario where you are physically and mentally incapacitated. That is, you may want to have comprehensive coverage for a time when you cannot vouch for yourself, your needs, and your preferences. This is why a power of attorney and healthcare proxy are so important. Please read on to discover what you can instruct in these two legal documents and how a seasoned Broward County power of attorney at The Probate Lawyers can help you appoint agents to make these decisions if and when the time comes.
What actions can be taken with a power of attorney?
Firstly, a power of attorney is a legal document that gives an appointed agent the authority to handle legal and financial decisions on your behalf. You may have this power enforced right away, or specify it for a time when you become physically ill or mentally incapacitated. Or even when you are out of state or otherwise unavailable for an extended period, and want the peace of mind of having someone take over these affairs in the meantime. That said, below are some actions your agent may execute on your behalf:
- Filing your annual tax returns and handling tax-related matters.
- Accessing your bank account funds to pay off your monthly bills.
- Pursuing your legal claims or defending your case in your litigation proceedings.
- Making decisions that affect your business operations and signing legal contracts involving your business.
- Selling your real estate property and using the funds to buy a new property or make another financial investment.
What decisions can be made with a healthcare proxy?
Secondly, a healthcare proxy is similarly a legal document that gives your named agent the power to make decisions on your behalf. However, these decisions are exclusively related to your healthcare. With that, your agent usually only assumes this role when you become incapacitated or unable to communicate. So, within this document, you may leave behind instructions for the following decisions:
- Opting for or rejecting life-prolonging procedures (i.e., artificial nutrition and hydration, mechanical ventilation, CPR, etc).
- Choosing the physicians to administer your treatment and the hospital or healthcare facility to receive your treatment.
- Directing the types of medical care, procedures, treatments, and services you wish to receive for certain health issues.
- Selecting which of your loved ones can access your medical records and receive updates on your current health.
- Opting for or rejecting organ donation at the end of your life, along with the specific organs you wish to give.
We can sympathize with how daunting this whole legal process may be for you. Well, lucky for you, the team at The Probate Lawyers has successfully gone through this countless times before. So please, retain the services of a competent Broward County advance healthcare directive lawyer today.
