What are the rights of a live-in companion vs. the rights of family when it comes to making medical decisions for that familys parent who is ill?
Consent for health care decisions depends on: • whether or not the parent has capacity to make decisions, and • who is chosen as the Health Care Agent and is designated in the Health Care Proxy. The following applies: • If the parent has capacity to make decisions, the individual (parent) retains the right. • If parent has lost capacity to make health care decisions, the decisions fall to the Health Care Agent identified in the Health Care Proxy. A person may have lost the capacity to make health care decisions but may retain the capacity to choose a Health Care Agent (Proxy). • If the parent has lost capacity to make health care decisions and there is no Health Care Proxy, the only decision covered in the law is a decision re CPR vs. DNR. The surrogate selection is as outlined in Step 4 on the MOLST “Supplemental” Documentation form for Adults.
