With the scary outbreak of Ebola, prevention, treatment and medical authorization come to mind. If you are unconscious someone needs to have legal authority to authorize medical treatment for you or to move you to another medical facility. That could be to Emory Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia, next door to the Center for Disease Control. Your Health Care Power of Attorney, aka Health Care Proxy, authorizes another individual to approve medical treatment for you in the event you are unable to approve it due to being unconscious, delirious, or some other factor. You want to have a trusted individual who will follow your health care desires as opposed to their own. You will also want backup individuals in case the initial Health Care Agent you have listed is unable or unwilling to serve.
You will want to have Health Care Directives, aka HIPPA authorizations. This authorizes the medical facilities to release medical information about you to the approved people. This could be individuals beyond your Health Care Agents who can call in and check on your health care status.
You will also want to have a Living Will which is your consent to the removal of a ventilator, or other similar life support measures, in the event you are terminally ill and death is eminent or you are in a persistent vegetative state.
You want versions of these three legal Health Care Authorities that will cross State lines and work in different States.
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