Don't sign living will form and you estate plan and family have difficult decision to make
Advanced Directives, most commonly known as a Living Will, is a legal document that dictates how medical decisions will be handled when a person has become medically incapacitated and unable to make decisions for themselves. It should be apart of any Estate Plan to avoid guardianship and probate proceedings.
A Living Will can contain specific conditions or situations in which the individual would not want to receive life sustaining treatment from surgery or resuscitation from cardiac arrest.
Advanced Directives also remove the decision making of family members who may have an opposing opinion about their loved ones' wishes concerning these procedures and would like some input on whether or not the Advanced Directive should be followed.
Advanced Directives remove the family of the individual from decision making when it comes to life sustaining treatments. Advanced Directives make decisions easier on the family when it is in place prior to an emergency happening.
Terri Schiavo
The topic of Advanced Directives was brought into light due to the case of Terri Schiavo who was diagnosed with a severe brain injury in 1990. The Advanced Directive that she had placed into place was followed by her husband. However parents were not satisfied with this decision because they believed that their daughter would want to live.
Eventually, Advanced Directives gained national attention and caused political controversy within the states of Florida and Washington after Terri Schiavo's death.
This case is not the only example on Advanced Directives causing family discord. Advanced Directives often cause tension between family members who do not agree with Advanced Directives about life sustaining treatments due to personal beliefs or religious reasons.
There are currently laws being passed to allow Advanced Directives use across state lines.
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