Should You Prepare a Living Will?

If you become unable to choose your own medical care because of illness, age, incapacity, or legal incompetency, having the right legal documents prepared in advance is essential. You can prepare those documents in Texas with the advice and help of an estate planning attorney in Texas. Or refer to this link if you’re interested in learning more about advanced medical directives.

In this state, the legal document that spells out the types of medical treatment you would or would not like to receive in certain situations is called an “advance medical directive” or a “living will.” What is a living will, why do you need one, and what can a living will do for you?

If you will continue to read this short discussion of living wills and Texas law, you’ll find the answers you may need, and you will also learn more about the legal advice and services that a living will lawyer can offer you.

What Does a Living Will Provide?

A “living will” and a “last will and testament” are two different documents. In Texas, a living will is a directive that tells medical providers what your specific treatment preferences are in the event that you are unable to tell them yourself because of illness, incapacity, or incompetency.

For example, your living will may express your desire not to be kept alive with a respirator. It allows you to choose continuing, life-sustaining treatments or to end life-support if your condition has been deemed terminal.

Texas law requires a living will to be signed in the presence of two witnesses. Typically with a living will, you will have a few different choices for end-of-life health care.

Generally, our documents often provide the following choices, so that you can get a feel for your options:

If, in the judgment of my physician, I am suffering from a terminal condition from which I am expected to die within six months, even with available life-sustaining treatment provided in accordance with prevailing standards of medical care:

I request that all treatments other than those needed to keep me comfortable be discontinued or withheld and my physician allow me to die as gently as possible; OR 

I request that I be kept alive in this terminal condition using available life-sustaining treatment. (THIS SELECTION DOES NOT APPLY TO HOSPICE CARE)

If, in the judgment of my physician, I am suffering with an irreversible condition so that I cannot care for myself or make decisions for myself and am expected to die without life-sustaining treatment provided in accordance with prevailing standards of care: 

I request that all treatments other than those needed to keep me comfortable be discontinued or withheld and my physician allow me to die as gently as possible; OR 

I request that I be kept alive in this irreversible condition using available life-sustaining treatment. (THIS SELECTION DOES NOT APPLY TO HOSPICE CARE)

Additional requests: If I am in the condition(s) described above I feel especially strongly about the following forms of treatment:

(initial all those that apply)

_______ I do not want cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

_______ I do not want mechanical respiration.

_______ I do not want tube feeding.

_______ I do not want tube hydration.

_______ I do not want antibiotics.

_______ I do want maximum pain relief, even if it may hasten my death.

Why is a Living Will Important?

You will always be given medications to relieve discomfort and pain unless you specifically reject such medications. You can also include special instructions in your living will to make your exact wishes known and abundantly clear to others.

If you have specific preferences regarding end-of-life medical care – for example, if you do or do not want to be placed on life support for an indeterminate period of time – a living will can ensure that your preferences are honored by your family members and health care providers. Refer to this link to learn more about whether or not you need to have a medical power of attorney notarized.

If you do not prepare a living will, your family and your doctors may only be able to speculate about your wishes, and this could cause painful, acrimonious arguments among your loved ones. But when you prepare a living will, no one will have to make a guess about the care you prefer.

What May You Include in a Living Will?

Your wishes regarding any or all of the following preferences and choices may be included in your living will:

  1.  pain management
  2.  blood transfusions
  3.  antibiotics and antiviral medications
  4.  kidney dialysis
  5.  feeding and hydration tubes
  6.  do not resuscitate and do not intubate orders
  7.  organ and tissue donations
  8.  donating your body for scientific study

A doctor in Texas who is unwilling to honor your desires as expressed in your living will – for a religious reason, perhaps – must try to find another physician who will provide the care and treatment that your living will require.

A Texas living will lawyer can explain the details of your choices and options for your living will, answer your questions about living wills, and address any related concerns that you may have.

What Happens After You Prepare a Living Will?

After your attorney has prepared your living will, make copies and store the original with your other important legal documents. Provide a copy to your health care providers and to the family members who may need it.

Your living will takes effect when a doctor certifies that you are permanently unconscious, in a vegetative state, terminally ill, or otherwise unable to make medical choices for yourself. Living wills require a doctor’s certification; you can’t arbitrarily decide to put the document into effect.

Can You Revise or Cancel Your Living Will?

In the future, if for any reason you need to revoke or change your living will, that may be done with help from your Texas estate planning attorney. You may cancel or amend your living will or ask your attorney to prepare an entirely new document on your behalf.

Additionally, you will need to review your living will for any changes that you may need to make if any of these circumstances arise:

  1.  A new medical condition: A diagnosis of a terminal or life-changing disease or medical condition may prompt you to change your living will or to prepare a new one. Ask your doctor what kinds of decisions may need to be made during the course of your treatment.
  2.  A divorce, separation, marriage, remarriage, or a spouse’s death: When you marry or divorce, and when you separate or become widowed, you may need to change your living will or prepare a new one.
  3.  Every five to ten years: Over time, your thinking may change. Even if your medical and marital situations remain unchanged, you’ll want to review your living will at least every ten years to ensure that it still reflects your thinking and articulates your wishes.

Should You Also Have a Medical Power of Attorney?

A living will gives directions to your medical providers regarding your end-of-life care, but even before end-of-life care becomes a consideration – if you become unconscious or incapacitated, for instance – you should also have a medical power of attorney.

Along with a living will, an estate planning attorney in Texas can prepare a medical power of attorney document. In that document, you may name an “agent” to make medical decisions for you.

Most Texans ask a spouse, another relative, a partner, or a close friend to act as their agent. The most important requirements for the person you name as your agent are dependability and trustworthiness.

What Else Should You Know About Living Wills?

It is a good idea to prepare both a living will and a medical power of attorney so that your instructions for your medical care are perfectly clear to anyone who needs to know.

A living will attorney in Texas can also help you prepare a last will and testament, a revocable or irrevocable trust, or any other estate planning document that’s appropriate for you, your family, and your estate.

The time to prepare for the future is now. To establish a living will or to learn more about planning for the future, call the offices of Mike Massey Law – today – and schedule a no-cost, no-obligation first legal consultation with an experienced attorney at Mike Massey Law with offices in Austin & Houston, Texas.