Does My College Student Need an Advance Directive?

If your young student is preparing for college, you might want to consider an advance directive in Boca Raton. You might have heard that an advance directive can ensure the family retains a certain degree of control in the event of a medical emergency. But is this really necessary? What might happen if your adult child goes to college without an advance directive? You can explore these questions alongside your estate planning attorney during an initial consultation.

How Does an Advance Healthcare Directive Work in Florida?

Also known as a “living Will,” an advance healthcare directive in Florida allows your college student to make certain medical decisions ahead of time. This type of estate planning tool can be helpful if your student ever becomes incapacitated in the future. For example, they might fall into a coma after a car accident or suffer brain damage after a drug overdose.

A living Will can help the family maintain control over various medical decisions when their adult child becomes incapacitated. For example, the advance directive might state that after a certain number of weeks, the patient should be removed from life support. Alternatively, an advance directive might state that the child’s organs should be donated to science or medicine upon their passing.

If the family has certain religious values, an advance directive can ensure doctors respect these principles during the adult child’s incapacitation. For example, the family might object to stem cell treatments or blood transfusions on religious grounds.

Does My Child Really Need an Advance Directive?

Parents should remember that once their adult child turns 18, they no longer have any say in how their young student receives treatment. Since the student is now a legal adult, they become the only person with the ability to make medical decisions about their own treatment. Many parents find this out the hard way after their child becomes incapacitated.

If you are not comfortable with losing all control over treatment decisions and “sitting on the sidelines” while doctors take control, you might want to consider an advance directive. That being said, this is not something that you can force your child to agree to. Your child must agree to create and sign an advance directive on their own.

Consider a Healthcare Surrogate Designation as Well

Supplement an advance directive with a healthcare surrogate designation. With this strategy, you can become your adult child’s “agent” if they ever become incapacitated. As the agent, you will have the legal authority to make all medical decisions on behalf of your adult child once they become incapacitated.

Can an Estate Planning Lawyer in Boca Raton Help Me?

An advance directive is not a complex or expensive estate planning tool, but it can save the entire family from considerable stress if something goes wrong during your student’s post-secondary education. Adult children may face all kinds of hazards during their college years, and it makes sense to rely on the protection offered by an advance directive. Continue this discussion by contacting a Boca Raton estate planning lawyer at 411 Probate (954-888-1747) today.

Sources: 

floridahospices.org/advanceD/DesigSurrogFAQ.pdf

floridabar.org/public/consumer/consumer003/