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📖 7 min read
Make your medical wishes known before you can't speak for yourself.
📋 Table of Contents
A healthcare directive (also called a living will or advance directive) is a legal document that tells doctors what medical treatments you do or don't want if you can't speak for yourself.
It typically has two parts:
Your written instructions about medical treatments — what you want and don't want.
Names someone to make medical decisions on your behalf when you can't.
These documents work together. Your living will states your wishes. Your healthcare proxy names someone to carry them out and make decisions your living will doesn't cover.
Your healthcare directive should address these situations:
Do you want CPR, ventilators, or other measures if your heart stops or you can't breathe on your own?
If you can't eat or drink, do you want a feeding tube or IV fluids?
If surgery is recommended, do you want your agent to consent? This includes both emergency and elective procedures.
If you're diagnosed with cancer, do you want chemotherapy or radiation therapy? These can extend life but often have significant side effects.
Would you want to try new, unproven treatments? These may offer hope when standard treatments fail, but outcomes are uncertain.
If your kidneys fail, do you want dialysis? It typically requires 3-4 sessions per week, each lasting several hours.
Do you want blood transfusions if needed? Some people decline for religious or personal reasons.
Do you want antibiotics to fight infections? In terminal situations, treating infections may prolong the dying process.
Do you want maximum pain relief even if it might shorten your life?
Do you prefer to be at home, in hospice, or in a hospital?
Do you want to donate organs, tissues, or your body to science?
These are deeply personal decisions. There are no wrong answers. What matters is that your wishes are documented so your family doesn't have to guess.
Your treatment preferences don't apply all the time — they activate when you have certain conditions that prevent you from making your own decisions:
An incurable condition where death is expected regardless of treatment.
Permanent unconsciousness with no awareness of surroundings.
A condition that cannot be cured or reversed and will progressively deteriorate.
Severe cognitive decline where you can no longer recognize family or communicate.
In the Settled questionnaire, you can select exactly which conditions should trigger your treatment preferences. This gives your healthcare agent clear guidance.
Your healthcare agent (also called a proxy or surrogate) makes medical decisions when you can't. This person should be:
This is often — but not always — your spouse. Some people choose a friend or sibling who they think can handle the emotional weight better. That's perfectly fine.
HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) protects your medical privacy. That sounds great — until your family can't get information about your condition.
A HIPAA authorization gives specific people permission to:
Without a HIPAA authorization, even your spouse may be blocked. Hospitals are legally required to protect your privacy. A HIPAA release is a simple document but incredibly important.
Settled generates a HIPAA authorization as part of your healthcare directive package. Name everyone who should have access to your medical information.
Creating the document is step one. Telling people about it is step two — and just as important.
Tell your healthcare agent
They need to know your wishes in detail. Give them a copy of the document.
Tell your family
Everyone should know who your agent is and what your general wishes are. This prevents conflict.
Tell your doctor
Give a copy to your primary care physician so it's in your medical record.
Keep copies accessible
In an emergency, people need to find this document fast. Don't lock it in a safe nobody can open.
👆 Select your state above to see specific requirements for your location.
Settled generates documents that meet your state's specific requirements. Complete the questionnaire and we handle the legal formatting.
Requirements vary significantly by state — from the number of witnesses needed to whether notarization is required. Make sure your documents comply with your state's specific laws.
Browse All State Guides →Settled helps you document your wishes in a legally valid healthcare directive.