Healthcare and Durable Powers of Attorney for College Students

Sending your child off to college can be scary. Make sure you and your child are covered in case of an emergency by having healthcare and durable powers of attorney in place. These two documents will allow you to make healthcare, financial, or legal decisions for your college student in the event of an emergency.

Did you know that once your child turns eighteen, they are considered an adult in the eyes of the law? What this means is that you are no longer given access to their health, financial, and educational records without having their consent. For this very reason, it is imperative for you to discuss the importance of healthcare and durable powers of attorney before they leave for college.

What is a healthcare power of attorney?

A healthcare power of attorney allows your college student to name someone else an agent to make healthcare decisions on their behalf should they be unable to. This legal document allows the designated person to access private medical records while they are acting on their behalf. The agent will be able to act on behalf of the injured/sick person, ensuring they receive the best possible care according to their wishes.

Without this document, medical providers are not allowed to release medical information to the parent. You do not want to be in this position, especially if you are in another state and are told that your child has been admitted to the hospital. A properly executed healthcare power of attorney will allow the hospital to release information about the child’s condition or care to you. You will be able to easily step in and access medical information during an emergency. This document also allows your child to include instructions relating to their healthcare, including wishes related to organ donation or wishes relating to religious or cultural practices. The student can keep these documents on file with their university or medical provider so that it can be easily accessed if needed.

What is a durable power of attorney?

A durable power of attorney allows your child to name you as their agent to make financial, legal, and business decisions on their behalf if they are unable to do so. This document allows parents to pay a child’s bills, access their bank account or education records, and/or manage their finances or legal decisions in the event of an emergency. Without a durable power of attorney, a parent cannot manage their child’s financial and legal affairs without petitioning the court to be appointed as the child’s legal guardian.

What are the benefits of these two documents?

If your college student is attending school outside the state of North Carolina and these two documents are not in place, the laws of that state will control who will be able to make decisions in case of an emergency. For example, in the state of North Carolina, if an adult (someone over eighteen years of age) does not have a healthcare power of attorney and is unmarried, most parents will be able to make medical decisions should the child be unable to. In this situation, parents will be joint decision-makers and will have to agree on all actions taken by medical providers. However, in NC and most other states, there is no default decision maker for legal and financial decisions. In this scenario a parent would have to seek to be appointed as the child’s legal guardian by the courts. Going through this process is more stressful, time-consuming, and costly, which is why having these documents in place before they are needed is key.

If you and your child live in North Carolina but the student is attending college outside of North Carolina, these documents give you the authority to act on behalf of your child in an emergency regardless of the other state’s rules. Your North Carolina documents will be valid in any other state.

Remember, accidents happen, so having a healthcare power of attorney in place for your child allows doctors to update you on your child’s condition, as well as allowing you to make healthcare decisions for them if they are not able. As a parent, knowing your child has a power of attorney gives you peace of mind when sending your son or daughter off to college.

How do you go about getting healthcare and durable powers of attorney?

First, discuss with your child what responsibilities they want you to have and the extent of authority that healthcare and durable powers of attorney grant you. Make sure they understand that these two documents will only go into effect if a medical provider certifies that they are not capable of making their own decisions. These documents are in effect for emergency purposes only and are there for their protection.

Then, call Craft Law Firm to schedule an appointment with Leslie Craft to go over and legalize the necessary documents. Craft Law Office will make this process easy and painless. Schedule a free consultation with Leslie today to discuss your options and review the necessary information. Having these documents in place will allow you to have peace of mind while your child is off to college.