Your Adult Child Needs a Health Care POA

     A few years ago, I received a phone call from a sobbing woman.  She was calling from the local hospital’s emergency room.  Her 19 year old son had been in a terrible motor cycle accident and was unconscious.  On top of it, the medical staff told her and her husband that they could not make health care decisions for their son since he is an adult unless they were to go to court and have a judge legally appoint them to be his guardian.  “They can’t be right, can they?  Why are they doing this to me?” she exclaimed.

Unfortunately, I had to gently tell her that the hospital personnel were absolutely correct.  Since her son did not have a “health care power of attorney” appointing her or her husband to be his “health care agent,” they could not make any decisions regarding his health care without a court order.  Obtaining such a court order would take some time and be costly, as a guardian ad litem would be needed for their son.  This story, luckily, has a happy ending.  The young man regained consciousness a few hours later and was alert enough to understand what was happening and communicate his health care decisions to his doctor. 

     About a week later the same woman called me again.  Her son just came home from the hospital and they wanted to know if I would come to their home and have him sign a health care power of attorney naming her as his health care agent and her husband as his alternate health care agent.  They learned this lesson the hard way.  Hopefully the rest of us can learn from this and encourage our young adult children to sign health care powers of attorney shortly after they turn 18 years old.

     Most people simply fail to realize that a properly drafted and signed health care power of attorney is a necessity for their children when they reach the age of 18 years.  At the age of 18 years, a child is a legal adult and no one else can make a medical decision for the 18 year old without an advanced directive in place, specifically a medical advanced directive, commonly called a health care power of attorney.  This legal document appoints an agent (and generally an alternate agent), usually mom or dad, to be able to make medical decisions for the 18 year old child if the child were to be legally “incapacitated” (such as in a coma or unconscious).

      With a properly signed health care power of attorney, a parent can make medical decisions for an unconscious, or otherwise incapacitated, adult child without having to go to court.  This brings some peace of mind should a medical crisis arise. 

            Since a Health Care Power of Attorney is a legal document, with many important ramifications, you should have your attorney draft it for you.

 We here at Muskego Law Group, your local counsel, are happy to assist you, your family and your business -- contact us at 262-679-5395.