So suppose that my next of kin is my brother, and if I am in a coma he’s got the power to pull the plug. Suppose I don’t like that possibility. He might not do it if it really needs doing, and I don’t want to be a Terri Schiavo. Outside of marrying someone, how can I give someone else that power? Do I need to have a will written, or advance directives, or some other kind of legal document to declare that Person X is the one with the say so?
I don’t think either of these change your legal next of kin, but if you sign a Power of Attorney document and/or give a properly drafted Living Will directive to somebody else, I believe those supersede the role of the next of kin in terms of making medical decisions for you that you are unable to make for yourself.
I’m not quite clear on the distinction between the Power of Attorney and the Living Will here. Can any more legal dopers shine light?
Yeah, legally speaking I don’t know what I’m talking about here. If I am incapacitated, I want to give the legal and medical decision making power to someone other than my brother.
I believe the following to be true:
A living will only gives specific instructions, e.g., no heroic measures. I think what you want is a medical power of attorney which authorizes an agent to make medical decisions on your behalf if you are unable to do so.
I do not believe that a general power of attorney necessarily confers medical power of attorney rights, but am not sure.
None of these change your next of kin for estate distribution purposes.
You need to talk to a lawyer who practises law in your state/province and is knowledgeable about the law on this area. The law varies from place to place and so does the terminology to describe it.
A fair start would be to Google “Alabama Durable Power of Attorney” and “Alabama Advanced Healthcare Directive” and like search terms.
Advance, not Advanced
Also, I put it in quotes to refer to the search terms. Your own Google search probably should not need them. The main things you’d be looking for are (1) that it is a power of attorney (a written document that authorizes another to act on your behalf), (2) that it is limited to healthcare decisions (if you do not want to authorize wideranging power — however, if you failed to anticipate something, that will be a limitation), and (3) that it is “Durable” or a “Healthcare” or “Medical” power of attorney (ordinarily, the incapacitation of the POA granting the POA terminates the authority, unless it conforms to heightened requirements of “durability”).
Here in NJ, anyway, the term is “durable power of attorney for healthcare.” This permits the named individual to make all medical decisions for you if you are unable to speak for yourself. The person named does not have to be any kind of kin.
At least in Ontario, Canada, there can be two kind of Power of Attorney.
Power of Attorney for Personal Care that would cover matters relating to health and Power of Attorney for Property that would cover anything related to finance and money.
As far as I know, these need not be granted to the same person.