• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Parman & Easterday

Oklahoma Estate Planning Attorneys

Call Now: (405) 843-6100 |
(918) 615-2700

Attend an Education Program-Oklahoma City Area Attend An Education Program in the Tulsa Area
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
    • What Our Clients Say
  • Estate Planning
    • Asset Protection
    • Business Succession Planning
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Financial Planning Assistance
    • IRA and Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • Powers of Attorney
    • Probate
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration and Probate
    • Young Families
  • Elder Law
    • Coping With Alzheimer’s
    • Elder Law
    • Emergency Medicaid
    • Guardianship & Conservatorship
    • Hospice Care
    • Medicaid Planning
    • Veteran’s Benefits
  • Resources
    • Asset Protection Worksheet
    • DocuBank
    • Elder Law
      • Elder Law & Medicaid Definitions
      • Elder Law Reports
      • Elder Law Resources
        • Edmond Elder Law
        • Oklahoma City Elder Law
        • Overland Park Elder Law
        • Yukon Elder Law
      • Medicaid
      • Nursing Home Resources
    • Estate Planning
      • An Overview of Estate and Gift Taxes
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
        • Advanced Estate Planning
        • Basic Estate Planning
        • Estate Planning for Niches
        • Trust Administration
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Free Estate Planning Worksheet
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Alzheimer’s FAQs
      • Asset Protection Planning
      • Estate Planning
      • Elder Law
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Inheritance Planning for Minors
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Nursing Home Asset Protection
      • Probate
      • Trust Administration
      • Trust Administration & Probate
      • Wills and Trusts
    • Newsletters
    • Probate and Trust Administration
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss of a Loved One
      • Probate Checklist
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
    • Probate Resources
      • Midwest City Probate
      • Moore Probate
      • Oklahoma City Probate
      • Overland Park Probate
    • Published Books
    • Pre Consultation Form
  • Communities We Serve
    • Edmond
    • Midwest City
    • Moore
    • Norman
    • Oklahoma City
    • Yukon
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us
  • BLOG
  • Contact Us
Home » Incapacity Planning » Key Reasons You Need a Power of Attorney for Incapacity Planning

Key Reasons You Need a Power of Attorney for Incapacity Planning

December 22, 2016 by Larry Parman, Attorney at Law

incapacity planning

Incapacity planning is essential to make sure someone can make healthcare decisions for you, and that person knows what kinds of healthcare you want to receive. Incapacity planning is also important because you want to ensure your financial affairs are properly managed should something happen to you.

You need to create a plan for incapacity before you become injured or ill. A power of attorney should be part of this plan for many different reasons.  Parman & Easterday can help you determine if you need a power of attorney and can assist you in the formal legal process of creating a power of attorney and naming someone to act as your agent. To get help today, give our Oklahoma City estate planning attorneys a call.

Why A Power of Attorney is Essential for Incapacity Planning

Title 58 of the Oklahoma Code addresses probate procedures and establishes rules for powers of attorney.  When a power of attorney is created, you can give your agent authority to handle both financial and medical issues on your behalf.  You can give your agent complete or limited authority over health care decisions. If you want the agent to make decisions regarding life-sustaining treatment, you must comply with the Oklahoma requirements for a health care proxy.

You need to create a power of attorney and follow the requirements for a healthcare proxy to ensure you do not get medical care you do not want.  Oklahoma statutes create a presumption that care should be provided. For example:

  • Title 63 O.S. §3131.1 establishes the presumption that everyone has consented to be resuscitated in case of cardiac or respiratory arrest; however, this presumption can be overcome with an advanced directive, with a Do Not Resuscitate, or when a healthcare proxy makes a decision not to resuscitate.
  • Title 63 O.S. §3080.1, establishes a presumption that every patient who is incompetent will want to receive sufficient hydration and nutrition to sustain life.  However, there are also some limited exceptions to this as well, including when there is an advanced directive in place or when two physicians determine administered hydration and nutrition would be impossible or would cause severe pain. If two physicians determine you are in the final states of a terminal illness and death is imminent, administered hydration and nutrition may also be withhold, except in circumstances where you would die of dehydration or starvation.

If you do not want to get this care under these circumstances, you must opt out of the presumptive rule.  You do this by creating an advanced directive. It is imperative that your loved ones and medical care providers know you have created an advanced directive and made medical decisions in advance. The Oklahoma Bar Association recommends you provide copies of your advanced directive to your family members; your doctor; your attorney; and both your healthcare proxy and alternate healthcare proxy. A copy should be kept with your important personal papers and you should make extra copies and bring them with you when you are admitted to the hospital or see any medical providers for the first time.  We also recommend you register these documents with a registry service to be sure they are always available.  We can assist with this, as well.

Unfortunately, even with an advanced directive or living will a situation could arise where a decision needs to be made about medical care you have not addressed.  This is when it becomes so important to have a power of attorney as part of your incapacity plan. The agent you chose when you created your power of attorney will have the authority to decide on your care–especially if you’ve followed the requirements for creation of a healthcare proxy.  There will be no question about who the physician should turn to if you cannot make decisions on your own.

While a focus on healthcare choices is one of the single most important reasons a power of attorney should be part of your incapacity plan, you also want to make sure someone can manage your assets as well. When you name an agent and create a general durable power of attorney, the agent can take care of managing money and property; paying bills; signing contracts; selling investments; and doing everything necessary to manage your property.

An Oklahoma City Incapacity Planning Lawyer Can Help Create a Power of Attorney

You need to know who will make decisions for you if you become incapacitated. Creating a power of attorney is the best way to do this since you name the agent (or agents) who will make healthcare decisions and manage your assets. To learn more and get the help you need, give us a call today at  (405) 703-9987 or contact us online to speak with an Oklahoma City incapacity planning lawyer.

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Founder and Owner at Parman & Easterday
After helping his own family deal with a lengthy probate and the IRS following his father’s untimely death in a farm accident, Larry Parman made a decision to help families create effective estate plans designed to reduce taxes, minimize legal interference with the transfer of assets to one’s heirs, and protect his clients’ assets from predators and creditors.
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Latest posts by Larry Parman, Attorney at Law (see all)
  • Estate Administration 101 - February 2, 2023
  • Why Do You Need an Elder Law Attorney? - January 31, 2023
  • Inheritance Planning for Blended Families - January 26, 2023

Filed Under: Incapacity Planning

Other Articles You May Find Useful

incapacity planning
Assert Your Choices to Prevent a Guardianship
incapacity planning
Will You Be Self-Sufficient When You Reach Your 80s?
HIPAA release
What Is HIPAA?
incapacity planning
Life As an Octogenarian Could Be Your Future
incapacity planning
Take Proactive Steps to Prevent a Guardianship
advance directives for health care
Prioritize Planning During Pandemic Surge

Primary Sidebar

Parman & Easterday, LLP

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE ESTATE PLANNING CHECKLIST

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR BLOG

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Where We Are

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK
13913 Quail Pointe Drive, Suite B
Oklahoma City, OK 73134
Phone: (405) 843-6100
Fax: (405) 917-7018

MAP

parman_sidbr_map

Where We Are

TULSA, OK
Memorial Place 7633 E. 63rd Place
Tulsa, OK 74133
Phone: (918) 615-2700

MAP

parman_sidbr_map

Office Hours

Monday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Tuesday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Wednesday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Thursday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Friday9:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Footer

footer-logo

The information on this Oklahoma Law Firm website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this or associated pages, documents, comments, answers, emails, or other communications should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information on this website is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing of this information does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.

Oklahoma City Estate Planning Attorneys at Parman & Easterday offer estate planning services in the Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and surrounding areas. Contact us for help today.

Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Disclaimer | Site Map | Powered by American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys


© 2023 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube