Healthcare Power of Attorney in New Hope

Choose for availability as well as trust

Start by asking whether your preferred person could realistically be reached and take part in healthcare decisions when needed. Then consider an alternate in case that person is unavailable or unable to serve. The Tennessee Advance Directive for Health Care addresses an agent and an alternate, along with healthcare preferences.

Compare the people you are considering by their willingness to serve, ability to communicate with you and others, and understanding of your wishes. The right choice is not simply the person who lives closest or the person named in another document; it is a decision about healthcare authority.

• Primary choice: Who would you want involved in healthcare decisions?
• Alternate: Whom would you trust if your first choice could not serve?
• Preferences: What healthcare instructions do you want recorded for others to consult?

Separate decision-making authority from information access

A healthcare power of attorney concerns authority to act on your behalf within the document’s scope. A HIPAA authorization concerns sharing health information; by itself, it does not appoint someone to make healthcare decisions. At the same time, an agent with healthcare authority under state law can be a HIPAA personal representative, so a separate authorization is not automatically required in every situation.

If you want another person to receive information but not make decisions, identify that distinction when reviewing your documents. If you name an agent, consider whether your existing information-sharing instructions fit that choice and whether your care providers have the documents they need.

• Decision-maker: Who may act under your healthcare directive?
• Information recipient: Who should be able to receive health information, and for what purpose?
• Existing instructions: Do current authorizations or directives align with the people you are naming?

Prepare a one-page decision and document checklist

Before discussing a new or updated directive, write down your proposed primary agent and alternate, their preferred contact details, and any healthcare preferences you want to address. Add a list of existing healthcare directives and information-sharing authorizations, noting where copies are kept and who has received them.

The Tennessee form includes document-signing and copy-sharing instructions. Review the current form and its instructions rather than relying on an informal copy or assuming that an older document still reflects your choices.

• Names and contact details for your proposed agent and alternate
• A short list of preferences or questions you want reflected in the directive
• Copies or names of existing directives and HIPAA authorizations, plus a note of who has copies

Review the plan together

Dale Law Group, PLLC, offers healthcare power of attorney planning and advance healthcare directives and living wills. The firm serves clients in Tennessee from its office in Murfreesboro; the office is not in New Hope.

Bring your checklist and ask how the proposed agent and alternate fit with your preferences, what authority the document is intended to address, and whether existing information-sharing authorizations should be coordinated. Also ask who should receive copies and how to update the plan if your choices or circumstances change.