Health & Benefits

If you do not have a power of attorney for health care, and you are unable to make decisions for yourself, your family and your doctors may make certain health care decisions for you in an emergency medical situation. The Health Care Surrogate Act says that your family, along with your doctors, can make health care decisions for you about whether to continue or go without life-sustaining treatment. The doctor must ask your family and friends about what to do, in the following order:

1. Court-appointed personal guardian,
2. Spouse,
3. Adult children,
4. Parents,
5. Adult siblings,
6. Adult grandchildren,
7. Close friend of the patient,
8. Court-appointed guardian of the estate, and
9. Temporary custodian, if a juvenile.

The above order cannot be changed. The person who would have the legal right to make your end-of-life medical decisions may not be the person you would choose to be in charge. For example, unmarried partners are not considered spouses in Illinois. 

You also might disagree with the decisions that are made. Or, your family members or friends may not be able to agree on how to handle your medical care, and a court could require a guardianship. A power of attorney for health care gives you control over how decisions are made for you and who you want to carry out those decisions. By choosing someone you trust as your agent, you can ensure that your wishes will be followed.