The healthcare portion of your Estate Plan is your Advanced Health Care Directive (or Health Care Power of Attorney). In this document, you record your wishes and instructions for your medical treatment; including any existing conditions or illnesses; as well as the people you nominate as your healthcare agents. You should determine those who will make healthcare decisions for you if you are unable. Your Advanced Health Care Directive should be updated whenever you have a major change in your health status.
HIPAA Authorization
Also included in the healthcare portion of your Estate Plan is your HIPAA Authorization, which gives the hospital and medical staff permission to share your health status with the people you’ve nominated as your healthcare agents. Your HIPAA should be updated every time you nominate new agents, or every 2-3 years to keep it current in the eyes of hospital personnel.
Disability Panel
Another part of the healthcare portion of your Estate Plan is your disability panel, included in your Trust. This is a list of the people authorized to determine your incapacity for purposes of handling trust accounts. Without your own plan, a government court is automatically authorized to make this decision. You probably prefer to name your own panel of doctors, professionals, loved ones, or a combination of any of those to determine your ability to make financial decisions relating to the Trust. Your disability panel does not need to be updated regularly, but should be reviewed at least as often as you review your list of healthcare agents.
