What legal documents do we need before a crisis (POA, health care proxy)?

Updated October 6, 2026 · General information, not professional advice

What legal documents do we need before a crisis?

When a parent has a stroke, a fall or a dementia diagnosis, families often discover they have no legal right to pay bills, talk to doctors or make decisions. The fix is simple but time-sensitive: your parent must sign these documents while they still understand what they are signing. Once capacity is lost, the usual alternative is a court guardianship or conservatorship, which is slower, more expensive and public.

The five core documents

1. Durable power of attorney for finances. Names an agent to manage bank accounts, pay bills, handle taxes and deal with property. "Durable" means it stays valid if your parent loses capacity.
2. Health care power of attorney (health care proxy). Names someone to make medical decisions if your parent can't communicate. States use different names, such as health care agent or medical power of attorney.
3. Living will (advance directive). States your parent's wishes about life support, resuscitation, feeding tubes and comfort care. Many states combine this with the health care proxy in one form.
4. HIPAA authorization. Lets doctors and hospitals share medical information with the people named.
5. Will. Says who receives property and names an executor. Some families also use a revocable living trust to avoid probate or manage assets.

Extra documents for serious illness and benefits

• POLST or MOLST (names vary by state): a medical order signed by a clinician for someone who is seriously ill, telling emergency staff which treatments to give or withhold.
• Social Security representative payee: Social Security does not accept a power of attorney for managing benefits. If your parent can't manage their benefits, you apply to SSA to be the representative payee.
• VA fiduciary: VA has its own process for managing a veteran's VA benefits.
• Bank and brokerage forms: some institutions ask for their own forms or review your power of attorney before accepting it. Check before a crisis.

How to get them done

1. Talk with your parent about who they trust and what they want. Choose a backup agent, too.
2. Use your parent's state's forms or rules. Signing, witness and notary requirements differ by state.
3. Consider an elder law or estate planning attorney, especially if there's a house, a blended family, or a chance Medicaid may be needed later.
4. If money is tight, your local Area Agency on Aging can point to free or low-cost legal services for people 60 and older.
5. Give copies to the agents, doctors and hospital, and keep originals somewhere you can find them quickly.

If your parent already has memory problems

A diagnosis of dementia does not automatically mean your parent can't sign legal documents. Capacity is judged for the specific decision at the time it is made, and many people in the early stages can still understand who they are naming and why. Act quickly:

• Schedule the signing at the time of day your parent is usually clearest.
• Ask the doctor to note in the medical record that your parent understood the decision, which can help if anyone questions it later.
• Have an attorney meet with your parent privately, so it's clear the choices are their own.

If your parent can no longer sign, ask an attorney about guardianship or conservatorship in your state, and whether a more limited arrangement would work.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Waiting until after a diagnosis of moderate dementia, when capacity may be questioned.
• Using a "springing" power of attorney that requires doctors to certify incapacity before it works, which can cause delays.
• Naming co-agents who must agree on everything, which can stall decisions.
• Adding a child's name to a bank account instead of using a power of attorney. This can create tax, creditor and Medicaid problems.
• Never discussing wishes, so the health care agent must guess.

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