A Health Care Surrogate is a person who makes medical decisions for you when you can no longer communicate. The Health Care Surrogate cannot override your wishes. Their sole role is to speak for you when you can no longer communicate with your doctor.

Our Health Care Surrogate is a separate document from our Durable Power of Attorney; the Durable Power of Attorney is a financial document, not a medical document. The person making medical decisions for you does not have to be the same person who handles your financial affairs. And your financial institutions do not need to know about your health issues, and your medical providers do not need to know about your financial situation.

You need to appoint someone as your Health Care Surrogate who will keep a cool head in a medical emergency. If you are appointing a child as your Health Care Surrogate, it need not be the oldest child - just the one best able to function in an emergency situation. Your Health Care Surrogate does not need to be a child, does not need to be a relative, does not even need to reside in Kentucky, although that is helpful. You should ask the person you want to appoint as your Health Care Surrogate if he or she will agree to be your Health Care Surrogate. Additionally, you should discuss your desires about medical care and treatment with your Health Care Surrogate.

Only one person should be appointed as your Health Care Surrogate. If more than one person is appointed, some medical providers may require all to be present and agree before any decision is made. Multiple Health Care Surrogates can disagree as to what treatment should be undertaken, causing problems for the health care provider. One person needs to make the necessary medical decisions.

Our Health Care Surrogate documents provide HIPPA language and provide protection for legal access to the Courts, if ever needed.

An alternate Health Care Surrogate should be named in case the primary Health Care Surrogate is not willing or able to carry out the required responsibilities. If you name your spouse as your Health Care Surrogate, if you are both in the same car accident, no one would have the legal authority to make medical decisions for you if an alternate is not chosen.

A Health Care Surrogate is needed by every adult over the age of 18. You never know when that meteorite is coming down to hit you on the head! Since you cannot know when a Health Care Surrogate will be needed, when it is needed is too late to sign one. You should have one now.