One of the most important parts of estate planning is to address your medical decisions in the future. There is a chance you could become incapacitated, such as if you have a degenerative brain disease or suffer from a medical emergency like a stroke. If you are incapacitated and cannot make your own medical decisions, your estate plan can help to do so.
The first way to do this is with a living will. This is a document that can give instructions to healthcare providers. Say that you know you do not want to be kept on life support or you do not want to be resuscitated. You can put these types of instructions in the living will so that, even if you cannot express your wishes to your medical team at the time, your estate plan tells them what to do.
How is a power of attorney different?
Another tactic is to use a medical power of attorney or a healthcare power of attorney. This is much different than a living will.
You do not actually leave instructions with a power of attorney. Instead, you designate an agent. You are giving this person the legal authorization to make your medical decisions.
In some ways, this may be a better option. Your agent can have your best interests in mind and consider all potential medical procedures while working closely with your doctor. You do not have to try to guess about the type of care you would want in advance because they can make those decisions when they are needed.
Either way, though, it is important to think about your future when making an estate plan, and you need to know about all the legal tools you have at your disposal.