Healthcare Power of Attorney in Orlinda

Choose an agent and an alternate deliberately

A healthcare power of attorney identifies someone to act as a healthcare decision-maker when the document gives that person authority to do so. An alternate can provide another option if your first choice is unavailable or cannot serve. Compare candidates by asking who understands your preferences, can communicate them, and is willing to take on the responsibility.

The Tennessee Advance Directive for Health Care form covers an agent or alternate as well as healthcare preferences. Naming a person and recording your preferences address related but distinct parts of planning: one identifies who may act, while the other helps communicate what matters to you.

• Would your preferred agent be comfortable discussing your wishes with others involved in your care?
• If that person could not serve, whom would you want considered next?
• Are there preferences or limits you want to discuss and document?

Separate decision authority from information access

A HIPAA authorization and a healthcare power of attorney serve different purposes. An information-sharing authorization can address who may receive protected health information; by itself, it does not appoint that person to make healthcare decisions. Conversely, state-law authority to make healthcare decisions can make someone a HIPAA personal representative. Whether a separate authorization is useful depends on your circumstances; do not assume it is always required just because you have named an agent.

When reviewing existing documents, identify what each one actually does. A financial power of attorney concerns authority over financial matters, not automatically healthcare decisions. A release for information should not be treated as an appointment.

Prepare a one-page coordination sheet

Before preparing or updating documents, make a short inventory to help keep the roles and instructions straight. List each document you already have, its purpose, the person named, and where a current copy can be found. Include any healthcare preferences you want to discuss and note who you expect to receive information. This is a discussion aid, not a substitute for reviewing the documents themselves.

• Healthcare decision-maker: primary choice and possible alternate.
• Preferences: topics or instructions you want addressed in your directive.
• Information sharing: people who may need access to medical information, and any authorization you already have.
• Existing documents: healthcare directive, HIPAA authorization, and any financial power of attorney, listed separately.

Questions to resolve before signing or updating

Bring your inventory and existing documents to a planning conversation. Ask how the proposed healthcare agent and alternate are identified, what healthcare preferences should be included, and whether an existing information-sharing authorization fits your needs. Also ask how to share copies with the people who may need them; the Tennessee form includes document-signing and copy-sharing instructions, but the appropriate steps depend on the document and your situation.

Dale Law Group, PLLC offers healthcare power of attorney planning, advance healthcare directives and living wills, and HIPAA authorizations. For people in Orlinda, the practical goal is a coherent set of instructions that distinguishes who may make decisions from who may receive information.