A health care power of attorney is a legal document that allows you to name someone to make medical decisions for you when you're unable to make them yourself. The person you name in the document is your health care agent or attorney-in-fact.
The benefit of filling out a health care power of attorney is that it allows you to name a trusted individual to make medical decisions on your behalf if you become incapacitated. Your health care agent would ideally know your values and wishes so that they could properly advocate for you.
If you don't have a health care power of attorney and become incapacitated, doctors will make medical decisions in conjunction with your legal next of kin. In Ohio, the order of priority is the following: spouse, children, parents, siblings, and then extended family. A health care agent trumps everyone on that list.
With this in mind, a health care power of attorney is important to have for any of the following reasons:
You don't have any legal next of kin
You do have legal next of kin, but you don't want them making medical decisions for you
You do have legal next of kin, but none of them are willing and able to make medical decisions for you
You have multiple legal next of kin that share equal authority, and they will likely disagree over what should be done
If you don't have any legal next of kin or a health care agent, a court will appoint a complete stranger to be your guardian. If you're uncomfortable with having a stranger make life and death decisions for you, then you should have a health care power of attorney.
In contrast to a health care power of attorney, which takes effect any time you're unable to make medical decisions for yourself, a living will is specifically about the type of care you do or do not want to receive if you were to become permanently unconscious or terminally ill and unable to communicate.
For example, a living will enables you to authorize a physician to withhold or withdraw artificially or technologically supplied nutrition or hydration if certain conditions are met.
While it's recommended to fill out a living will, you don't have to. However, if you want a health care agent, you MUST fill out a health care power of attorney and give it to your doctor.
To learn about how health care agents should make decisions, click here.