[WSBAPT] WSMA Health Care Forms

[Tara]

I have a client that used the WA State Medical Association forms for the
their living will and DPOA for health care.  Often clients will bring me
forms that have already signed from their doctor’s office or prepared by
their health care institution.  The forms are usually bare bones, but will
get the general job done.

 

But I’m perplexed by these WSMA forms.  None of them contain any language
at all granting access to the grantors private health care information or
HIPPA or Washington Public Health and Safety act at all.  That is a huge
red flag to me.

 

Also, the forms go out of their way to state that Washington doesn’t
require a notarization or witnessing of DPOAs, but mentioned other states
might - right under the signature space.  I suppose is technically true
that there’s isn’t an express statutory requirement to notarize or
witness.  But isn’t this bad practice and terrible advice?  Leaving aside
the common law equal dignities rule, which indicates to me that if an
attorney-in-fact is going to be vested with the power to withdraw life
sustaining treatment then the signature on the document granting that
authority should also be witnessed by two people just like a health care
directive does - I can put that aside b/c there’s no case law or statute
to say it’s required, but it’s my best practices approach.  But is it
anyone’s practice to just let the client leave a naked signature?  Every
hospital admission or consent form that I’ve seen has at least one
witness.  And I have heard countless stories about clients family members
having difficulty with health care facilities accepting stationery store
forms or forms that were completed incompletely.

 

Why doesn’t the WSMA encourage or at least recommend a practice that will
bolster the document’s authenticity and encourage a health care facility
to have confidence to rely on the document?

 

My biggest problem is this now creates a conflict of authorities in the
client’s mind.  Why is my attorney telling me that the forms created and
published by the leading medical association in Washington State are
faulty or inadequate.  Who knows best about effectuating my health care
choices - the organization in charge of doctors in Washington or my
attorney, who wants me to spend more money to do more legal work?  They
are problems I can overcome during my conferences, but these shouldn’t
issues that I have to battle to begin with.

Sorry for the rant.

 

 

 

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