Do You Have a Living Will?
Clients come to my office to talk with me about planning for incapacity and death. These are hard conversations to have, even in an elder law attorney’s office.
Of all the documents that I prepare, the Living Will, gives my clients the most trouble.
This document, a dying declaration, states what kind of end-of-life care you want when there is no medical probability of recovery. Most people do not want to be kept alive artificially.
But what does that mean? Do you want a feeding tube? Hydration? Blood transfusion? How far are you willing to go? And what about dementia? Do you want to be force fed when you no longer have hunger or the ability to feed yourself?
And who should be your advocates or decisions makers? A family member (who might not be willing to let you go) or a medical person that you trust?
Knowing your legal rights and putting them in writing will help ensure that your wishes are met.
An elder law attorney can help guide you through this difficult conversation.
