Gold Rush 1849 – Where the news is good as gold

CITE: U.S. Legalforms.com

If you have been named “power of attorney” (POA) by a family member or friend this means that you are an “agent” or “attorney-in-fact” and have the legal authority to make decisions for the “principal,” who is the person who appointed you POA. It may be that the “principal” is unwell or fears imminent incapacitation due to health problems and doesn’t feel that he can make decisions any longer thus the need to appoint a trusted person as POA.

The person or principal who is appointing the POA determines exactly how much power the attorney-in-fact has. The POA or attorney-in-fact may only be given authority to deal with one specific issue, which is a specific power of attorney, or can be given the authority to handle most of the principal’s financial and personal matter (a general power of attorney).

Once appointed POA, you will be required to make decisions about finances, health care decisions, including the huge responsibility of deciding on giving-, withholding- or stopping medical treatments, diagnostic procedures and services. In fact, a separate “health care or medical POA” can be created, which specifically gives the attorney-in-fact the power to deal with medical issues and nothing else.

A medical power of attorney is appointed via a document that is signed by an individual who is an adult and competent and who specifies a person that he trust to make health care decisions for him in the event that he can’t make them himself.

As soon as the document is executed and delivered to the agent, or the medical POA, it goes into effect and remains in effect indefinitely unless a specific termination date is included in the document or the POA status is revoked or the principal becomes competent and capable of making his own medical decisions.

The agent, or the person designed as medical POA, can not make health care decisions that the principal objects to. This holds true regardless of the principal’s competence. If he says “no” then it is “no.”

The medical power of attorney is given quite a wide berth; however, he cannot decide that the principal needs to be committed to a mental institution, should undergo psycho-surgery or convulsive treatment, receive an abortion or neglect comfort care.

Medical power of attorney can be revoked as easily as orally or in writing telling the principal’s health care provider that principal intends to revoke the medical POA.

MY TAKE:

Appointing a POA is a wise move on the part of someone who is elderly, perhaps in poor health and deems himself incapable of making certain decisions or judgments. However, the person who is appointed POA has to be a trustworthy and honorable character, and, unfortunately, this isn’t always the case, which can lead to havoc. Fortunately, POA status can be revoked. The principal, or the individual who bestowed POA status on an individual can take it away.