What are Living Wills and Powers of Attorney for Healthcare and Property?
• The Power of Attorney for Healthcare and the Living Will, also called advanced directives, document your wishes for medical treatment in the event of a serious illness or injury. • The Power of Attorney for Healthcare is a detailed document that appoints an agent to make medical decisions on your behalf when you are unable to do so yourself. • The Living Will simply tells medical professionals not to administer medical procedures that will artificially postpone your life. A Living Will does not direct anyone to “pull the plug”. However, this maybe designate in the Power of Attorney for Healthcare. • The Power of Attorney for Property appoints an agent that can act on your behalf if you become unable to act independently concerning your personal and financial property. Therefore, if you are seriously ill or injured, or simply need assistance in maintaining you real and personal property, your agent can access your bank accounts to pay your bills and can maintain your investments, etc.
