The Importance of a Health Care Proxy for College Students
As a parent, it is not unusual to feel you are in the best position to help your child make the best decisions in life, especially with regard to health treatments. However, there are legal barriers you may encounter once your child becomes an adult. Once your child turns 18, the responsibility of making health care decisions for your child is taken away by the law unless you have been named as an agent by a health care proxy. Particularly, your child’s access to medical information and records becomes restricted by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) provisions. Executing a health care proxy for college students is one of the simplest ways to ensure you can continue to take care of your child after they’ve left for college. A healthcare power of attorney for college students is different from medical power of attorney for college students.
What is a College Student Health Care Proxy?
A health care proxy is a legal document that designates an adult with legal capacity as the agent with the legal right to make decisions on the medical treatments for a patient in the event that the patient is unable to do so (whether as a result of severe injuries, mental health).
A healthcare proxy for college students guarantees your right as a parent, to legally access the child’s medical information and records and make a fully informed decision on the treatment to be provided. Such a decision will be based on the patient’s wishes and the facts available from medical records. In order to properly execute a health proxy for college students, you should hire a qualified Long Island health care lawyer.
What if an Accident Occurs in College?
As a college student, your child will be away from your immediate supervision. Accidents or incapacitation may occur during this time that may cause your child to be unable to make health care decisions on treatments. This situation may not be a pretty sight. The good news is that it can be prevented. It is for you to decide whether you want to be reactive to such a situation or very proactive by executing a medical proxy for college students.
But to be proactive about your child’s health, you must get an experienced Long Island healthcare lawyer to prepare a custom health proxy for college students. The wording of the college student health care proxy must be tailored to allow you access to the medical records and information of your child. You must fill up the health care proxy form for college students accurately.
Benefits of Having a Health Care Proxy for College Students
Here is a list of benefits when you sign a health care proxy:
- A person of your choosing gets to decide the treatments
- Your wishes can be carried out the way you want
- Ability to stop treatments that are not in the patient’s best wishes
- Avoid confusion and legal hurdles in critical situations
Health Care Proxy vs Power of Attorney vs Living Will
Many parents often ask if a medical power of attorney for a college student is sufficient to grant the authority of a health care proxy to the attorney. The simple answer is no. A medical POA for a college student may not be used for healthcare decision-making. A Health Care Proxy is only used for health-care-related matters. A Living Will is often used to express one’s wishes for end-of-life decision-making and is used in conjunction with a healthcare proxy as an expression of the patient’s wishes.
Can a Health Care Proxy Have More Two or More Agents?
Strictly speaking, a healthcare proxy can only have a single agent or proxy named in the document. However, the document may specify legal backups in the event that such a primary agent or proxy is unable to act. The backups may be one or two agents with their order of priority specified as only one agent can act at a time.
The Law Offices of Elan Wurtzel, P.C. Can Help
Do you have a child in college or a loved one freshly resuming college in New York or out of state? Speak to an experienced Long Island healthcare lawyer at the Law Offices of Elan Wurtzel to discuss your legal options and help you prepare a well-tailored healthcare proxy for college students.
