When a person chooses to make a Living Will, along with the Medical Power of Attorney, these two legal documents become an Advance Directive.
An Advance Directive may include your sign, names of witnesses, their signatures, etc. in adherence to your state’s requirements. Every state has different requirements to be followed. Some states ask for witnesses and notaries, others look for different criteria to be followed.
Likewise, some states consider Living Will and Advance Directive as different and separate documents, whereas others consider both documents the same. In some states, Living Will and Advance Directive are used interchangeably.
In this article, you will get a complete guide for making an Advance Directive for Healthcare in Maryland.
Legal Requirements for a valid Advance Directive
- Written by the grantor/declarant (i.e. the maker of an Advance Directive): Yes
- Grantor must be:
- Above the age of 18 years: Yes/if under the age of 18, is married or is the parent of a child.
- Sound mind and memory: Yes
- Signed by the grantor: Yes
- Signed by Proxy/Agent: No
- Proxy/agent accepts his role in writing: No
- Witness required: Yes
- Number of witnesses: 2
- Signed by the witnesses: Yes
- Number of documents required: 1 (Form 2 is optional)
- Other names for a Living Will in Maryland: Advance Directive
- Other names for a Healthcare Power of attorney in Maryland: Advance Directive
- Proxy can decide on mental health issues: No
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Who can be your witnesses in the Maryland Advance Directive?
Anyone can be your witness in Maryland if;
- He is an adult i.e., above 18 years of age, and
- He is a sound-minded person which means that he can understand the consequences of making an Advance Directive and the laws applied to it.
Note: Your witnesses cannot be:
- Your healthcare proxy/agent,
- Related to you by blood, adoption, or marriage (at least one witness),
- Entitled to a share in the estate on your death (at least one witness).
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Who can be your Proxy in the Maryland Advance Directive?
Anyone can be your Proxy/Agent in Maryland if
- He is an adult i.e., above 18 years of age, and
- He is a sound-minded person which means that he can understand the consequences of making an Advance Directive and the laws applied to it.
Who cannot be your Proxy/Surrogate:
- If you are receiving care at a health care institution then your supervising health care provider, its operator and employee,
- The spouse, parent, child, or sibling of any of the above health care provider, its operator and employee,
- Someone that you have a protective order against,
Unless:
- That person is related to you by blood, marriage, adoption, or even a close friend.
For instance, your guardian, spouse (not if you are currently separated from or divorcing your spouse), domestic partner, adult child, parent, sibling, or other close relative or close friend who could be appointed as your surrogate or approached by the healthcare providers in case you do not appoint an agent.
Other than the above legal requirements, the Proxy/Agent should be:
- Trustable to adhere to your wishes and intentions.
- Trustable to defend you if there’s any disagreement about your medical care.
- He wanted to be your Attorney in Fact of his own free will to take care of your health affairs.
- He should not be your doctor or one of the caretakers.
Note: You can appoint an Alternate Proxy as well. The alternative Proxy/Agent will step in if the first person you name as a proxy is unable, unwilling, or unavailable to act for you or if you decide to revoke his authority.
When does an Advance Directive come into effect in Maryland?
In Maryland, an Advance Directive becomes legally valid but doesn’t come into effect on signing the form by the grantor, proxy, and witnesses.
An Advance directive comes into effect only when the doctor declares that you are incapable of deciding on your own and have become debilitated due to illness or injury.
Note: Your Maryland Advance Directive will not be effective in any medical crisis or emergency unless you are declared incapacitated to understand and communicate your wishes and consent by your doctor.
Learn about the requirements of Maryland Last Will and Testament and Maryland Last Will and Testament Template.
How can an Advance Directive be revoked?
You can revoke or terminate your Maryland Advance Directive at anytime by:
- A written revocation,
- An Electronic revocation,
- An oral revocation in presence of your agent/physician,
- Tearing, burning, and obliterating or destroying the document in any other way,
- Executing a new Advance Directive.
Note: Revocation of the Advance Directive will be effective when you communicate about it to your doctor, agent or anyone who has its photocopy.
How to amend or change an Advance Directive?
You can make changes or amend your Advance Directive at any time in Maryland but once it was witnessed and signed you have to remake a new document with the required changes. It is recommended to go through, double-check, and make sure of everything before signing the Advance Directive.
Maryland rules for changing Marital status after making your Advance Directive
Divorce from the spouse will not make any effect on the validity of the Maryland Advance Directive unless the spouse was named as an agent in the Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare, the divorce or annulment of marriage or legal separation will revoke the healthcare agent's power with immediate effect.
Form 1 of the Maryland Advance Directive
There are two legal documents/forms in Maryland. An Advance Directive is Form 1 (which includes Living Will and Selection of Agent) that allows you to refuse the medical treatment you would or do not prefer if there comes an event you lose the ability to make decisions.
Form 2 is Maryland's “After My Death,” form which allows you to make decisions regarding organ donation, whole body, and the final disposition of your remains.
Part 1, Form 1: Appointment of Healthcare Agent
Form 1 of the Advance Directive is divided into three parts. You may fill out Part I/Part II, or both, depending on your needs but you must complete Part III.
In Part 1, you can fill this form out and provide all the details about the appointment of the Healthcare Proxy/Agent along with the instructions to be followed by him.
Part 1, Section F, H, and I
Part 2, Form 1: Treatment Preferences (Living Will)
This section states your wishes regarding medical care when your doctor determines that either
- that you are terminally ill and to prolong artificially your life you would need artificial life-sustaining procedures or your death will occur with or without the use of life-sustaining procedures, or
- that you are in a persistent vegetative state.
Part 3: Execution
You must sign in the presence of two witnesses. The details of the witnesses along with their signs are also required.
Form 2 (Optional) of the Maryland Advance Directive
Give photocopies of the signed original to your agent and alternate agent, doctor(s), family, close friends, clergy, and anyone else who might become involved in your health care. If you enter a nursing home or hospital, have photocopies of your document placed in your medical records.
Be sure to talk to your agent(s), doctor(s), clergy, family, and friends about your wishes concerning medical treatment. Discuss your wishes with them often, particularly if your medical condition changes.
