Follow along to find out how a power of attorney differs from a healthcare proxy and how a proficient New York City power of attorney lawyer at Zimmet Law Group, P.C., can help you determine which legal documents to establish and agents to appoint.
How is a power of attorney different than a healthcare proxy?
For one, a power of attorney is an estate planning document that gives a certain individual, appointed as your agent, authority to work on your behalf for a range of legal and financial matters. Depending on your chosen document type, you may grant your agent as much or as limited power as possible. That is, a general power of attorney gives broad authority, which is usually best if you want assistance handling standard, routine procedures such as filing your annual income taxes. This is while a limited power of attorney, as you may assume, restricts this control for a specific task or period. For example, you may instruct your agent to sell your real estate property if and when you get to the point where you move into a nursing home.
Then, a healthcare proxy lets your agent make decisions exclusively for your healthcare. In other words, they are essentially called to serve as your healthcare representative if you become incapacitated. For instance, if you get involved in an accident and enter a coma, they may instruct your treating physician whether to keep you on or take you off life-sustaining care. Or, if you sadly pass away, they may decide whether all, some, or none of your organs should be donated. Of note, if you wish to express your preferences for these hypothetical scenarios, you may do so in a living will document.
Should I name separate agents for these two legal documents?
As you can see, appointing someone to serve as your agent is asking them to take on a great burden of responsibility. To avoid this undue pressure, you may find it best to name one agent for your power of attorney, and another agent for your healthcare proxy. Another valid reason to make this decision is if you believe there are differences in areas of expertise. For example, you may have a loved one who is financially savvy and another loved one who works in the medical field.
On the flip side of this argument, having a sole individual fill both roles may lend to simplicity in overlapping decisions. For instance, a medical decision that holds considerable financial weight, like opting for an expensive surgical procedure. At the same time, you may be lucky enough to know a sole individual with a deep understanding of all your end-of-life wishes. In the end, you must choose the path that works best for your personal set of circumstances.
We can sympathize with how daunting this whole legal process may be for you. Well, lucky for you, the team at Zimmet Law Group, P.C., has successfully gone through this countless times before. So please, retain the services of a talented New York City advance healthcare directive/healthcare proxy attorney today.
