St. Louis Advance Health Care Directive Attorney
In Missouri, you can create documents that keep you in control regarding your health care in emergency or end-of-life situations. An advance health care directive can allow you to plan for the future by designating an individual – known as an agent or proxy – to make important medical decisions for you should you become incapacitated or unable to communicate your wishes.
If you are interested in learning more about advance health care directives, contact TdD Attorneys at Law to request a free consultation.
Why Choose Us?
- Our attorneys have over 30 years of combined experience protecting our clients’ legal interests. We have in-depth knowledge of Missouri’s laws on advance health care directives.
- Our clients always come first. We pride ourselves on creating custom solutions, giving honest advice and setting clear expectations throughout the legal process.
- Our legal team in St. Louis includes passionate estate planning lawyers, aggressive litigators and highly experienced family law attorneys.
What Is a Health Care Directive in Missouri?
A health care declaration, also known as a health care directive, living will or advance directive, ensures that your wishes regarding medical treatment are followed if you are unable to communicate such to the doctors yourself. The document usually discusses the use of artificial life support machinery and/or a feeding tube that can prolong life for many years, even with no hope of any recovery.
Chapter 459 of the Missouri Revised Statutes outlines the laws and requirements guiding the drafting and administration of a health care directive. Without an advance health care directive or living will, your health care decisions may be left to an individual you would not otherwise choose to have that power.
What Is a Living Will?
In addition to an advance health care directive or living will, it is extremely important that you have a power of attorney to ensure someone has the power and authority to make certain the wishes you have outlined in your directive are followed by the doctors and hospital.
Differences Between a Living Will and a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care in St. Louis, Missouri
A living will is a type of advance health care directive that enables an individual who is unconscious or incapacitated to express his or her wishes regarding extraordinary medical treatments in end-of-life scenarios, such as measures taken to extend the individual’s life when there is no reasonable expectation that he or she will regain consciousness.
A Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA) for health care, on the other hand, is a designated agent who is given the authority to make a range of health care decisions for the individual. This may include end-of-life care, but can also include decisions about other medical treatments, such as surgeries and medications.
A health care DPOA gives an individual more flexibility and adaptability to respond to unforeseen medical circumstances compared to a living will alone. If an individual becomes incapacitated and unable to communicate his or her health care decisions, a DPOA for health care can make a broad range of medical decisions rather than only life-sustaining treatments.
What Steps Should I Take to Ensure My Health Care Wishes Are Respected in St. Louis if I Am Unable to Communicate?
As a patient in St. Louis, Missouri, you can express your wishes regarding medical care and treatments even while unable to communicate by planning ahead of time with an advance health care directive.
Creating a health care directive and/or a Durable Power of Attorney for health care allows you to plan for the possibility of becoming incapacitated in the future. Once you have these documents, you can provide copies to your health care providers to ensure they are included in your medical records and applied in case of an emergency.
Start the process by discussing your health care wishes with your loved ones and determining who you will designate as your proxy. Then, you can create a living will and/or appoint a DPOA for health care. You can explore these options, learn which legal requirements must be met to create valid and legally enforceable documents, and have an attorney help you with the paperwork by contacting TdD Attorneys at Law.
How Does a St. Louis Advance Health Care Directive Attorney Facilitate the Process for Clients With Terminal Illness or Chronic Conditions?
If you are an individual who is living with a terminal illness or chronic condition, an advance health care directive attorney in St. Louis can play a crucial role in authorizing someone to make important medical decisions for you, including end-of-life decisions, that may arise in your future. An attorney can provide legal guidance, support and personalized services to create the documents you need to have greater peace of mind.
Your lawyer can address a wide range of potential health care needs and create a customized advance health care directive based on your specific wishes, values and medical circumstances. This includes helping you select a health care proxy. An attorney can coordinate with health care professionals and communicate with your medical providers to ensure that your directives are properly documented and followed.
Call a St. Louis Advance Health Care Directive Attorney
The St. Louis estate planning attorneys of TdD Attorneys at Law can provide a single document entitled health care declaration that includes both your wishes outlined in a health care directive and a power of attorney granted to the individual you choose to ensure.
From our office in St. Louis, TdD Attorneys at Law represents clients in communities throughout the metro area. Contact us at (314) 276-1318 to schedule an initial consultation with an experienced estate planning attorney today.