Living Wills

A living will lets you express your wishes about life-sustaining treatments. This applies if you have a terminal or irreversible condition, or if you can’t communicate, like when in a coma. It may direct that life-sustaining procedures be withheld or withdrawn.

A living will is a key legal document. It shows your treatment choices if you are terminally ill and unable to speak. Here are some reasons to consider one:

1. Control Over Medical Treatment: If you can’t make decisions, a living will ensures that others respect your wishes about life-sustaining treatments, such as artificial ventilation or feeding tubes. 

2. Avoiding Prolonged Suffering: You can state that you don’t want life-prolonging treatments if recovery seems unlikely. This choice helps you avoid unwanted measures that can extend the dying process. 

3. Stress Relief for Family: Without clear instructions, family members may struggle with tough care decisions. A living will eases this burden by making your wishes clear. 

4. Preventing Disputes: If you don’t document your wishes, your family may fight over your care. A living will provides legal clarity and helps to avoid conflicts. 

5. Compliance with Medical Providers: Medical providers must respect your living will. This takes effect only after a diagnosis and certification by two doctors. This ensures your wishes come first, overriding others’ opinions.

Any adult, 18 or older, can create a living will. Two competent adult witnesses must sign the document. These witnesses cannot be related to the person or have a claim to their estate.

Yes, an adult can create a living will. They must do this in front of two witnesses. This applies after doctors diagnose them with a terminal condition or if they fall into a coma.

If an adult patient has not made a living will, the following individuals, in this order, can do so on their behalf: 

• Court-appointed guardian. 

• Spouse (if not legally separated). 

• Adult children (as a group). 

• Parents (as a group). 

• Other relatives by descent (as a group).

Yes, two competent adult witnesses, at least 18 years old, must sign the living will. You cannot have a blood or marriage relationship with them. They also cannot inherit any part of your estate.

Your living will only takes effect after two doctors examine you. One must be your attending doctor. They need to certify in writing that you have a terminal and irreversible condition.

To create a living will in Louisiana, you must state your medical care preferences. Below are key sections and decisions to consider: 

1. Statement of Intent 

   • Declare that you do not want your life artificially prolonged under certain conditions. 

   • State your desire to receive only comfort care to manage pain and provide dignity. 

2. Conditions for Effectiveness

   • The living will takes effect when two doctors, one being your attending physician, write that you have: 

     • A terminal and irreversible condition (an incurable illness or profound comatose state with no chance of recovery) 

     • A condition where life-sustaining procedures would only prolong the dying process. 

3. Preferences for Life-Sustaining Treatment 

   • Specify your preferences for the treatments below. You can choose to accept or decline each one: 

     • Artificial Nutrition and Hydration: Decide if you want food and water through feeding tubes or if you prefer to stop them. 

     • Respirators/Ventilators: Decide if you need help breathing if your lungs fail. 

     • Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR): Decide if you want help if your heart or breathing stops. 

     • Kidney Dialysis: Choose if you want dialysis to clear toxins from your blood if your kidneys fail. 

     • Other Medical Interventions: Examples include chemotherapy, blood transfusions, surgery, or other invasive treatments.

4. Comfort Care Instructions

   • You will receive medications, procedures, or care for pain and comfort. This will continue even if other treatments stop.

5. Special Instructions or Limitations 

   • List any additional instructions or restrictions that show your values, beliefs, or treatment preferences. 

6. Communication of Wishes 

   • Ensure that healthcare providers and family respect your wishes, even if they don’t agree.

7. Signatures and Witnesses 

   • Sign and date the document, putting the date on each page. Do this in front of two witnesses who are impartial according to Louisiana’s rules. 

   • As an option, you can also have the document notarized, although this is not required by Louisiana law.

You can decide if you want life-sustaining treatments, like respirators or feeding tubes, to keep going or to stop. You can also state your preferences for pain relief and comfort care.

Example Options to Include: 

• “I do not want artificial nutrition or hydration if I am in a terminal and irreversible condition.” 

• “I do not want medications for pain management and comfort care. 

• “All life-sustaining procedures should be withheld if I am diagnosed as having no reasonable chance of recovery.”

If you want to change your living will without completely revoking it,

• Draft a new version with the desired changes. 

• Follow the same execution requirements (signing, dating, and witnessing) as the original document. 

• Clearly state in the new document that it replaces any prior living wills.

You can revoke your living will at any time. You might want to revoke your will if you change your mind about medical treatment or life support. Big life events such as marriage, divorce, or a serious illness can be good reasons to update your will. 

Here’s how you can revoke your living will:  

• You can revoke your living will in two ways: verbally or in writing. You may tell your doctor, family, or healthcare provider that you want to revoke it. You can also create a signed and dated document. It should clearly state your intent. A written revocation is the preferred method. 

• Destroy the document by tearing or burning it. This shows that you no longer want it to be valid. 

• Send a written notice of revocation to the Louisiana Secretary of State if you registered it. 

• If your doctor has a copy of your living will, you must inform them of your revocation. Ask them to document the date and time they received your notice in the medical record.

No, you do not need a lawyer to create a living will in Louisiana. To make a valid will in Louisiana, follow the state’s legal rules and use the proper form. A lawyer can help you tailor the living will to address complex or specific instructions. A lawyer can help make sure your living will is legal and error-free. For more information, see Finding and Hiring A Lawyer.

Keep your living will in a safe spot where you can easily find it. Also, make sure the right people know it exists. Here are some suggestions: 

• Personal storage at home - Keep the original document in a safe and easy-to-reach spot. 

• Provide copies to key individuals - 

  • Ask your doctor or healthcare provider to place a copy in your medical records. 

  • If you have a healthcare power of attorney, give a copy to the person you’ve designated as your agent. 

  • Provide copies to family members or trusted friends who may be involved in your care. 

• Hospital or Nursing Home: If you visit a healthcare facility, give them a copy for their records. Also, ask them to note your wishes in your medical chart.

• Register with the Secretary of State: Filing your living will with the Secretary of State makes it easy for healthcare providers to find it. Visit the Louisiana Secretary of State Living Will Registry page. 

• Carry a wallet card - This shows you have a living will and your healthcare agent's contact info (if you have one).

If you don’t have a living will in Louisiana, your medical care decisions will be handled in the following ways: 

1. Your Family or Legal Representation Will Make Decisions 

   • If you're unable to decide, like if you're in a coma, healthcare providers will talk to your family or a legal representative.

   • The order of priority for decision-making is typically: 

     • Your spouse (unless legally separated). 

     • Your adult children. 

     • Your parents. 

     • Your siblings. 

     • Other relatives or next of kin. 

     • If there is no family, the court may appoint a guardian or curator to act on your behalf. 

2. Life-sustaining treatment May Be Provided 

   • Without a living will, healthcare providers must give life-sustaining treatment. This is the law unless there’s a clear instruction saying not to.

No, a living will does not give someone else the power to decide for you. It lets you state your medical treatment wishes ahead of time. This is key for life-sustaining care if you have a terminal illness and can’t speak for yourself. 

You need a different legal document if you want someone to make healthcare decisions for you in other situations. This document is called a healthcare power of attorney (HCPOA) or a medical power of attorney.

No, a living will and a healthcare power of attorney are not the same. They serve different roles in medical care planning when you're unable to make decisions. A living will lays out your wishes for life-sustaining treatment. This ensures your preferences are clear. A healthcare power of attorney allows someone you trust to make other healthcare choices. This is important for situations not covered by the living will. For more information, see Healthcare Power of Attorney (HCPOA). 

It is your responsibility to notify your physician about your living will. If you are unable to do so, someone else who knows about it can inform the physician. 
Optional Registration: You can register your living will with the Louisiana Secretary of State. This allows healthcare providers to verify your living will if needed. For more information, visit the Louisiana Secretary of State’s End-of-Life Registries page.

Yes, Louisiana may honor out-of-state living wills, but there are some important considerations: 

1. Legal Recognition

   • Louisiana law does not guarantee full recognition of out-of-state living wills. However, healthcare providers usually respect them as proof of your wishes. A living will from another state is more likely to be honored if it was properly executed there. It should clearly state your medical treatment preferences. 

2. Potential Legal and Medical Variations 

   • States have different laws governing advance directives, including living wills. Louisiana may have different requirements for:

     • Witnesses.

     • Types of life-sustaining procedures covered (e.g., artificial nutrition and hydration).

     • Conditions under which the living will takes effect.

     • If your out-of-state will doesn’t meet Louisiana’s rules, it may cause delays or problems in carrying out your wishes.

3. Steps to Ensure Compliance in Louisiana

   • If you move to Louisiana permanently or stay there for a long time, think about making a new living will.

Yes, in some cases, your healthcare provider in Louisiana might not follow your living will. Louisiana law says that if a healthcare provider won't follow your living will, they must:

• Make a reasonable effort to transfer you to another provider who will follow your instructions.

• This means they cannot simply ignore your living will without attempting to arrange for alternative care.

If a provider refuses to follow your living will and fails to arrange a transfer to another provider, you or your family may need to consult an attorney to enforce your rights. For more information, see Finding and Hiring A Lawyer.