New "Utah Advance Health Care Directives"

In January of 2008, a new law in Utah entitled the "Advance Health Care Directive Act" ("UAHCDA") replaced the somewhat less useful "Personal Choice and Living Will Act."  The purposes of both of these acts was to make it easier for individuals to control the decision-making process related to their health care if they ever became unable to make such decisions for themselves due to incapacity.  As many people learned through the unfortunate events surrounding the Terry Schaivo case, planning for incapacity can be critically important for a variety of reasons.  For many individuals, certain medical procedures, when performed upon them, are offensive to their religious or moral convictions.  For others, procedures to prolong life regardless of the circumstances -- such as when someone is "brain dead" or in a "persistive vegetative state" -- are objectionable.  And even if one is not certain what they would decide in particular circumstances, it may nevertheless be desireable to name someone that you trust to make such end-of-life decisions in the event that you become incapacitated. 

The old law was a positive step towards accomplishing this goal of helping people maintain as much control over these decisions as possible back when it was first implemented in 1979.  However, since then, it became clear that numerous roadblocks remained.  In 2005, Governor Huntsman formed a commission of 21 professionals from a variety of backgrounds to, among other things, revisit this law and determine whether it could be improved to better meet its objectives.

The result was a number of real improvements some of which include:

• Reference to federal HIPAA law to ensure that medical information can be accessed by your health care agent when you cannot do so yourself.
• The ability to give effect to oral directives when that is all a family has to go by.
• A consolidation of three separate forms to a single form with four parts.
• Less stringent document execution requirements (fewer witnesses and notary requirements).
• Ability to grant a broader scope of powers to an appointed agent.
• A broader scope of medical treatments that may be withdrawn if desired.

The above items are only a sample of the improvements made by this new law.  Overall, the effect has been to make it easier for individuals to control their own health care decisions.  Nevertheless, there is a significant amount of thought required on the part of every individual in order to maximize the benefits that are available through the UACHDA.  A discussion of these issues with your attorney, your physician and most importantly, your family, are key to making this wonderful new planning opportunity available to you and your loved ones.  To obtain more information on this law and to obtain a copy of the statutory form, click here.