TITLE 23
Health and Safety
CHAPTER 23-4.10
Health Care Power of Attorney
SECTION 23-4.10-2
§ 23-4.10-2 Statutory form of durable
power of attorney.
The statutory form of durable power of attorney is as follows:
STATUTORY FORM DURABLE POWER OF ATTORNEY FOR HEALTH
CARE
WARNING TO PERSON EXECUTING THIS DOCUMENT
This is an important legal document which is authorized by
the general laws of this state. Before executing this document, you should know
these important facts:
You must be at least eighteen (18) years of age and a
resident of the state for this document to be legally valid and binding.
This document gives the person you designate as your agent
(the attorney in fact) the power to make health care decisions for you. Your
agent must act consistently with your desires as stated in this document or
otherwise made known.
Except as you otherwise specify in this document, this
document gives your agent the power to consent to your doctor not giving
treatment or stopping treatment necessary to keep you alive.
Notwithstanding this document, you have the right to make
medical and other health care decisions for yourself so long as you can give
informed consent with respect to the particular decision. In addition, no
treatment may be given to you over your objection at the time, and health care
necessary to keep you alive may not be stopped or withheld if you object at the
time.
This document gives your agent authority to consent, to
refuse to consent, or to withdraw consent to any care, treatment, service, or
procedure to maintain, diagnose, or treat a physical or mental condition. This
power is subject to any statement of your desires and any limitation that you
include in this document. You may state in this document any types of treatment
that you do not desire. In addition, a court can take away the power of your
agent to make health care decisions for you if your agent:
(1) Authorizes anything that is illegal,
(2) Acts contrary to your known desires, or
(3) Where your desires are not known, does anything that is
clearly contrary to your best interests.
Unless you specify a specific period, this power will exist
until you revoke it. Your agent's power and authority ceases upon your death
except to inform your family or next of kin of your desire, if any, to be an
organ and tissue owner.
You have the right to revoke the authority of your agent by
notifying your agent or your treating doctor, hospital, or other health care
provider orally or in writing of the revocation.
Your agent has the right to examine your medical records and
to consent to their disclosure unless you limit this right in this document.
This document revokes any prior durable power of attorney for
health care.
You should carefully read and follow the witnessing procedure
described at the end of this form. This document will not be valid unless you
comply with the witnessing procedure.
If there is anything in this document that you do not
understand, you should ask a lawyer to explain it to you.
Your agent may need this document immediately in case of an
emergency that requires a decision concerning your health care. Either keep
this document where it is immediately available to your agent and alternate
agents or give each of them an executed copy of this document. You may also
want to give your doctor an executed copy of this document.
(1) DESIGNATION OF HEALTH CARE AGENT. I,
(insert your name and
address)
do hereby designate and appoint:
(insert name, address, and telephone number of one individual
only as your agent to make health care decisions for you. None of the following
may be designated as your agent: (1) your treating health care provider, (2) a
nonrelative employee of your treating health care provider, (3) an operator of
a community care facility, or (4) a nonrelative employee of an operator of a
community care facility.) as my attorney in fact (agent) to make health care
decisions for me as authorized in this document. For the purposes of this
document, "health care decision" means consent, refusal of consent, or
withdrawal of consent to any care, treatment, service, or procedure to
maintain, diagnose, or treat an individual's physical or mental condition.
(2) CREATION OF DURABLE POWER OF ATTORNEY FOR HEALTH CARE. By
this document I intend to create a durable power of attorney for health care.
(3) GENERAL STATEMENT OF AUTHORITY GRANTED. Subject to any
limitations in this document, I hereby grant to my agent full power and
authority to make health care decisions for me to the same extent that I could
make such decisions for myself if I had the capacity to do so. In exercising
this authority, my agent shall make health care decisions that are consistent
with my desires as stated in this document or otherwise made known to my agent,
including, but not limited to, my desires concerning obtaining or refusing or
withdrawing life-prolonging care, treatment, services, and procedures and
informing my family or next of kin of my desire, if any, to be an organ or
tissue donor.
(If you want to limit the authority of your agent to make
health care decisions for you, you can state the limitations in paragraph (4)
("Statement of Desires, Special Provisions, and Limitations") below. You can
indicate your desires by including a statement of your desires in the same
paragraph.)
(4) STATEMENT OF DESIRES, SPECIAL PROVISIONS, AND
LIMITATIONS. (Your agent must make health care decisions that are consistent
with your known desires. You can, but are not required to, state your desires
in the space provided below. You should consider whether you want to include a
statement of your desires concerning life-prolonging care, treatment, services,
and procedures. You can also include a statement of your desires concerning
other matters relating to your health care. You can also make your desires
known to your agent by discussing your desires with your agent or by some other
means. If there are any types of treatment that you do not want to be used, you
should state them in the space below. If you want to limit in any other way the
authority given your agent by this document, you should state the limits in the
space below. If you do not state any limits, your agent will have broad powers
to make health care decisions for you, except to the extent that there are
limits provided by law.)
In exercising the authority under this durable power of
attorney for health care, my agent shall act consistently with my desires as
stated below and is subject to the special provisions and limitations stated
below:
(a) Statement of desires concerning life-prolonging care,
treatment, services, and procedures:
(b) Additional statement of desires, special provisions, and
limitations regarding health care decisions:
(c) Statement of desire regarding organ and tissue donation:
Initial if applicable:
[ ] In the event of my death, I request that my
agent inform my family/next of kin of my desire to be an organ and tissue
donor, if possible.
(You may attach additional pages if you need more space to
complete your statement. If you attach additional pages, you must date and sign
EACH of the additional pages at the same time you date and sign this document.)
(5) INSPECTION AND DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION RELATING TO MY
PHYSICAL OR MENTAL HEALTH. Subject to any limitations in this document, my
agent has the power and authority to do all of the following:
(a) Request, review, and receive any information, verbal or
written, regarding my physical or mental health, including, but not limited to,
medical and hospital records.
(b) Execute on my behalf any releases or other documents that
may be required in order to obtain this information.
(c) Consent to the disclosure of this information.
(If you want to limit the authority of your agent to receive
and disclose information relating to your health, you must state the
limitations in paragraph (4) ("Statement of desires, special provisions, and
limitations") above.)
(6) SIGNING DOCUMENTS, WAIVERS, AND RELEASES. Where necessary
to implement the health care decisions that my agent is authorized by this
document to make, my agent has the power and authority to execute on my behalf
all of the following:
(a) Documents titled or purporting to be a "Refusal to Permit
Treatment" and "Leaving Hospital Against Medical Advice."
(b) Any necessary waiver or release from liability required
by a hospital or physician.
(7) DURATION. (Unless you specify a shorter period in the
space below, this power of attorney will exist until it is revoked.)
This durable power of attorney for health care expires on
(Fill in this space ONLY if you want the authority of your
agent to end on a specific date.)
(8) DESIGNATION OF ALTERNATE AGENTS. (You are not required to
designate any alternate agents but you may do so. Any alternate agent you
designate will be able to make the same health care decisions as the agent you
designated in paragraph (1), above, in the event that agent is unable or
ineligible to act as your agent. If the agent you designated is your spouse, he
or she becomes ineligible to act as your agent if your marriage is dissolved.)
If the person designated as my agent in paragraph (1) is not
available or becomes ineligible to act as my agent to make a health care
decision for me or loses the mental capacity to make health care decisions for
me, or if I revoke that person's appointment or authority to act as my agent to
make health care decisions for me, then I designate and appoint the following
persons to serve as my agent to make health care decisions for me as authorized
in this document, such persons to serve in the order listed below:
(A) First Alternate Agent:
(Insert name, address, and telephone number of first
alternate agent.)
(B) Second Alternate Agent:
(Insert name, address, and telephone number of second
alternate agent.)
(9) PRIOR DESIGNATIONS REVOKED. I revoke any prior durable
power of attorney for health care.
DATE AND SIGNATURE OF PRINCIPAL
(YOU MUST DATE AND SIGN THIS POWER OF ATTORNEY)
I sign my name to this Statutory Form Durable Power of
Attorney for Health Care on ]]]]]]]]]]]]]] at
(Date) (City)
]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
(State) ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
(You sign here)
(THIS POWER OF ATTORNEY WILL NOT BE VALID UNLESS IT IS SIGNED
BY ONE NOTARY PUBLIC OR TWO (2) QUALIFIED WITNESSES WHO ARE PRESENT WHEN YOU
SIGN OR ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR SIGNATURE. IF YOU HAVE ATTACHED ANY ADDITIONAL PAGES
TO THIS FORM, YOU MUST DATE AND SIGN EACH OF THE ADDITIONAL PAGES AT THE SAME
TIME YOU DATE AND SIGN THIS POWER OF ATTORNEY.)
STATEMENT OF WITNESSES
(This document must be witnessed by two (2) qualified adult
witnesses or one (1) notary public. None of the following may be used as a
witness:
(1) A person you designate as your agent or alternate agent,
(2) A health care provider,
(3) An employee of a health care provider,
(4) The operator of a community care facility,
(5) An employee of an operator of a community care facility.
I declare under penalty of perjury that the person who signed
or acknowledged this document is personally known to me to be the principal,
that the principal signed or acknowledged this durable power of attorney in my
presence, that the principal appears to be of sound mind and under no duress,
fraud, or undue influence, that I am not the person appointed as attorney in
fact by this document, and that I am not a health care provider, an employee of
a health care provider, the operator of a community care facility, nor an
employee of an operator of a community care facility.
Option 1 Two (2) Qualified Witnesses:
Signature: ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] Residence Address:
Print Name: ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
Date: ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
Signature: ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] Residence Address:
Print Name: ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
Date: ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
Option 2 One Notary Public
Signature: ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]] , Notary
Public
Print Name: ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
Date: ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
My commission expires on: ]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
(AT LEAST ONE OF THE ABOVE WITNESSES OR THE NOTARY PUBLIC
MUST ALSO SIGN THE FOLLOWING DECLARATION.)
I further declare under penalty of perjury that I am not
related to the principal by blood, marriage, or adoption, and, to the best of
my knowledge, I am not entitled to any part of the estate of the principal upon
the death of the principal under a will now existing or by operation of law.
Signature:
Print Name:
History of Section.
(P.L. 1986, ch. 190, § 1; P.L. 1989, ch. 291, § 1; P.L. 2000, ch.
261, § 1; P.L. 2002, ch. 334, § 1; P.L. 2006, ch. 604, §
1.)
