Florida Estate Planning: Health Care Documents
The primary healthcare document in your Estate Plan is a Health Care Power of Attorney, also known as an Advanced Health Care Directive. It is in this document that you record your wishes and instructions for your medical treatment and the people you nominate as your healthcare agents, who will make healthcare decisions for you if you are no longer able to do so. Whenever you have a major change in your health status, your Advanced Health Care Directive should be updated.
You should also have a HIPAA Authorization as part of your Estate Plan. A HIPAA Authorization gives medical institutions and/or staff legal permission to share your health status with the people you’ve designated as your healthcare agents. Be sure to update your HIPAA every time you nominate new agents.
You may also wish to nominate a disability panel and include the information in your Trust. A disability panel is a list of people you have authorized to decide when you should be declared incapable of handling trust accounts. Although a court can make this decision, you can also name a panel of physicians, financial and/or legal professionals, loved ones, or a combination of any of these to determine your ability to make financial decisions relating to the Trust.
To learn more about how to nominate someone to make healthcare decisions for you, contact our Jacksonville estate planning law firm.
