Planning for end of life or critical care is not a favorite topic of conversation, but it is an important one. Having health care advance directives in place can help ensure your wishes are made clear to your loved ones and physicians when you are not in a position to advocate for the type of care you wish to receive.
What is a health care advance directive? The American Bar Association’s Commission on Law and Aging External defines a health care advance directive as “the generic term for any document that gives instructions about your health care and/or appoints someone to make medical treatment decisions for you if you cannot make them for yourself.”
Typically, health care advance directives take two main forms: a living will and a durable power of attorney for health care, although the titles for these documents might vary from state to state. Living wills are defined as documents “in which you state your wishes about life-sustaining medical treatment if you are terminally ill, permanently unconscious, or in the end-stage of a fatal illness.” Alternately, a durable power of attorney for health care is defined as a “document in which you appoint someone else to make medical treatment decisions for you if you cannot make them for yourself. The person you name is called your agent, proxy, representative, attorney-in-fact, or surrogate. You can also include instructions for decision-making.”
In this section, we will provide some resources that will help you communicate your preferences regarding medical treatment. When completing your research, please keep in mind that the law regarding health care advance directives is very dependent on state law.
There are many helpful online resources for those interested in creating health care advance directives. We have collected a selection of resources below:
We also suggest using the Guide to Law Online, created by the Law Library of Congress, to find more information about laws and regulations, as well as legal research guides, for your state.
If you are able to visit your local public law library, there are also several print-based resources that can provide guidance—and, in some resources, even sample forms—regarding different health care advance directives. Some of the print resources in the Library of Congress collection include:
The Law of Later-Life Health Care and Decision Making by 
Durable Powers of Attorney and Health Care Directives by Durable Powers of Attorney and Health Care Directives, 4th by 
Estate Planning for People with a Chronic Condition or Disability by 
The Health Care Power of Attorney and Living Will by Do-it-yourself Living Will : Simple 1-2-3 Kit includes CD with Forms for Every State by 
