The end of life sometimes begins with an advance directive. Learning about advance directives now may make things easier for your loved ones later, when they're in a hospital room trying to ...

Christy Bieber has a JD from UCLA School of Law and began her career as a college instructor and textbook author. She has been writing full time for over a decade with a focus on making financial and ...

States generally allow a person (principal) to appoint another person (agent) to make health care decisions, receive protected health information, or both on the principal’s behalf. In many states, ...

An advance directive is a way to tell your loved ones and doctors your wishes if something happens and you can’t speak for yourself. A directive can include the type and extent of your medical care.

It’s a common hope that most people share: that their end-of-life wishes will be respected if something happened and they couldn’t make their own health care decisions. Yet only about a third of ...

Two main types of advance directives are living wills and healthcare power of attorney. These are legal documents that outline a person’s preferences regarding major medical decisions. An advance ...

When I checked into a surgical center recently for a procedure that required general anesthesia, I presented my advance healthcare directive. But as I read over the consent form for the surgery, I ...