Living wills are legal documents that give you the power to make decisions regarding the health care you receive.
They are an important, yet underappreciated, piece of a complete probate and estate plan.
Ohio law permits living wills to be changed or modified at any time. With a living will, you may select a person to obtain your health information and make health care decisions for you.
Under Ohio law, health care decisions can be made on your behalf only if you cannot make the decisions for yourself. To be valid, a living will in Ohio must be signed in the presence of two witnesses or a notary public who attests that you are of sound mind and free from duress.
Benefits Of A Living Will
Here are five reasons to consider having a living will.
1. You control your fate. With a living will, you make the health care decisions before you are unable to make the decisions for yourself.
2. The future is not guaranteed. If you think end-of-life issues are decades away, you are failing to recognize an important scenario for living wills: a medical emergency that results from an accident or unexpected health issue.
3. A living will relieves your loved ones from being forced to make difficult health care decisions on your behalf.
4. A living will gives you specificity for end-of-life health treatment. Many people associate living wills with the limiting of health care. In truth, you can specify any degree of care, ranging from every possible lifesaving method to no treatment.
5. A living will can preserve your legacy and save it from being consumed by expensive health care treatment you do not want.
Sources:
1. “What Are Advance Directives?” FindLaw
2. “Modified Uniform Rights Of The Terminally Ill Act,” Ohio Revised Code