Powers of attorney and health care directives
If you can't sign, who can?
A stroke, a fall or dementia can leave a family unable to pay a parent's bills or talk to the hospital. Two short documents, signed while everyone is well, prevent that.
Most of the calls we get about these come from a son or a daughter, not from the parent. That's fine: call us. We'll speak with your parent alone for part of the meeting, because the documents only hold up if the choices are theirs.
We can meet at home, in assisted living or at the hospital bedside, any day of the week, with a notary.
What we prepare
Three papers, three different jobs
Durable power of attorney
Names an agent for money: bills, the bank, taxes, the house. It keeps working if you lose capacity.
Advance health care directive
Names who speaks to your doctors and writes down what care you want at the end of life.
Medical privacy release
Lets the doctors tell your children what's happening, even before anyone has to decide anything.
When a parent is already slipping
A diagnosis of early dementia doesn't automatically mean it's too late. Many people can still sign a power of attorney in the early stages, as long as they understand what they're signing. Call us soon, and tell us what the doctor said.
If it is too late, a court can name someone to decide for your parent. That's a conservatorship, and we handle those too, but it takes months and a judge, which is why we'd rather meet you a year early.
Powers of attorney, answered
Does the agent have to live nearby?
No, but it helps. Many families name one child for money and another, closer by, for medical decisions.
Can I take the power back?
Yes. While you're able to decide, you can cancel it or name someone else in writing, and we tell the bank and the doctors.
Will the bank accept it?
Banks are used to them, but some ask for their own forms too. We send the document to your bank ahead of time so the question comes up now, not in a crisis.
Talk to us before the hospital does
Call about your parent, or for yourself. We'll tell you what we'd prepare and where we can meet.