Health-Care Power of Attorney in Citrus, Los Angeles County

First identify the decision you want covered

A health-care directive can designate an agent for health-care decisions. A document addressing financial authority serves a different purpose; it should not be treated as a substitute for appointing a health-care agent. Comparing the documents can help you focus on whether the change you are considering concerns health-care decisions, financial matters, or both.

This page concerns choosing a health-care decision maker and possible alternates. It does not address medical recommendations or set out treatment preferences. Choosing an agent and communicating your own treatment preferences are separate questions.

• For a question about who may make health-care decisions, review the health-care directive and the agent it identifies.
• For a question about financial matters, identify the document addressing financial authority.
• If you want to communicate treatment preferences, discuss that separately rather than assuming agent selection expresses them.

Compare the documents you already have

Before deciding what to change, gather the health-care directive you currently rely on and any document you understand to address financial authority. Note each document’s stated purpose and the person it identifies. The practical question is which type of decision each document addresses: health-care authority and financial authority have different purposes.

If you are unsure what a document means, mark the wording that raises the question and ask for help understanding it. Do not assume that an older document is ineffective or that creating another document automatically resolves a conflict. Whether particular documents apply to your circumstances requires individual review.

• List each document, the person named, and what you understand its purpose to be.
• Write down which decisions you want covered and what remains unclear.
• Describe the change you are considering: a different health-care agent, an alternate, financial authority, or a separate discussion of treatment preferences.

Discuss your choice of agent and alternates

To prepare for choosing an agent, consider whom you would want involved in health-care decisions and whom you would want considered if your first choice could not act. You might also discuss with possible choices how you would like to communicate your wishes. These are personal planning questions, not legal criteria or guarantees about how someone will act.

Keep the purpose of the appointment clear. A health-care agent appointment concerns health-care decisions; financial authority is a separate function. If both are concerns, identify them separately rather than assuming one document addresses both.

• Who are you considering for the health-care agent role, and what matters to you about that choice?
• Who would you want considered as an alternate?
• What would you like possible choices to understand about how you want to communicate your wishes?
• Are you also trying to address financial authority?

Prepare for a focused review in Citrus

Bring or identify the health-care directive and any financial-authority document you want compared. Note the people currently named, the people you are considering, and the questions you want answered. This preparation can help keep the discussion focused on the distinct purposes of health-care and financial authority.

Codi M. Dada Law Office P.C. has one physical office in Novato and provides virtual services throughout California, including Citrus. Citrus is an unincorporated community, and service there does not indicate a firm office in Citrus. A planning discussion can help you identify documents to compare and questions to resolve; it is not medical advice.