Many estate plans focus on what happens when someone dies. Testators draft wills to designate beneficiaries who can inherit their assets or nominate someone to serve as the guardian of their children.
The best estate plans are more robust and address a variety of different circumstances. In addition to testamentary documents that help preserve an individual’s legacy and provide support for their loved ones, living documents that protect individuals during emergencies can also be valuable.
Adults in Arizona may want to add living wills to their estate plans. Also known as advance health care directives, living wills provide information about an individual’s medical preferences in case they cannot communicate those wishes in an emergency situation, including end-of-life decisions.
What inspires adults to add living wills to their comprehensive estate plans?
Worries about loved ones
Married individuals have protection in emergency scenarios. A spouse has the authority to communicate with medical professionals and make decisions about the treatment that a vulnerable person receives.
Realistically, a spouse could very well end up incapacitated or worse in the same incident that incapacitates an individual. Even if a spouse is healthy, the stress that they experience while responding to the emergency could make it more difficult for them to recall prior conversations about medical preferences.
They could doubt their choice and then experience profound guilt worrying if they made a mistake. Living wills provide clear instructions about medical preferences and help take the pressure off of loved ones, including spouses.
Specific medical preferences
Many people want whatever medical interventions are necessary to sustain their lives in an emergency. However, some people have unusual medical preferences. Some people have religious beliefs that prohibit them from taking certain types of medications or receiving blood transfusions, for example.
Others who may have progressive or terminal medical conditions may want to limit the heroic interventions employed to save or prolong their lives. When people have medical wishes that deviate from current best practices, a living will can help ensure that their loved ones and healthcare professionals provide them care that aligns with their wishes.
For many people, the peace of mind that comes from knowing their wishes are on record is the incentive that drives them to draft a living will. The addition of living wills to estate plans can protect people when they are at their most vulnerable. Proactively addressing unpredictable circumstances can help people protect themselves and their loved ones while they’re grappling with some of the most challenging situations imaginable.
