A Georgia (GA) advance directive is a document used to record your intentions for health care if you become unable to communicate them yourself. Use this document to describe your preferences for various medical treatments and assign a healthcare agent to make important decisions on your behalf.
Your doctor and healthcare agent must carry out the wishes you record in the advance directive document. Your agent is responsible for making any decisions not clearly addressed in the document and assisting with all aspects of your care.
Laws: O.C.G.A § 31-32 of the Georgia Code governs the creation of advance directives for health care in Georgia.
In addition to your advance directive, consider creating a Georgia Financial Power of Attorney to assign an agent to handle your financial affairs if you become incapacitated.
How to Fill in an Advance Directive in Georgia
Take these steps to make sure your advance directive covers all of your care wishes according to Georgia law.
If you only want to assign an agent to make medical decisions on your behalf, you should complete a Georgia medical power of attorney. Conversely, if you want to record your healthcare preferences without assigning an agent, you should complete a living will. Though the Advance Directive form combines these two documents, you can leave whichever section you don’t need blank and the form will remain valid.
Step 1: Choose an agent
Your agent should be a trustworthy person who knows your values and is able to act on your behalf if you’re unable to communicate your care preferences.
According to Georgia law, your healthcare agent is required to make decisions for you based on their knowledge of your wishes. If they don’t know what you would have wanted in a certain situation, they must act in your best interest.
Relevant law: O.C.G.A. 31-32-7
Who can’t be your agent?
Your agent can’t be your doctor or anyone else directly involved in your health care.
Relevant law: O.C.G.A 31-32-4
Can you have more than one agent?
Yes, in case your primary healthcare agent can’t fulfill their duties for any reason, you can name up to two backup agents to take over in the order they’re listed in the document.
Relevant law: O.C.G.A 31-32-4
Step 2: Specify what healthcare decisions your agent can make
Think about what aspects of your healthcare-related decisions you’d want your agent to make on your behalf and include specific instructions in your advance directive document.
If you don’t limit your healthcare agent’s powers, they can legally take a variety of actions on your behalf — for example:
- Admitting you to a healthcare facility
- Consenting to the disclosure of your medical records
- Deciding what happens to your remains
- Refusing or consenting to medicine or treatments
It’s essential to describe your wishes in detail and talk to your agent about your intentions for treatment, final arrangements, and other important healthcare decisions so they can act accordingly.
Relevant law: O.C.G.A. 31-32-7
What is your agent legally unable to do?
Georgia law prevents your healthcare agent from consenting to your:
- Psychosurgery
- Sterilization
- Involuntary hospitalization or treatment as outlined in O.C.G.A Title 37
Your agent is bound by law to abide by your wishes and act in your best interest. If they are found to be acting against your wishes or neglecting your care, the court can remove their powers.
Relevant law: O.C.G.A. 31-32-7 and O.C.G.A Title 37
When can your agent start making decisions for you?
Your agent can only make healthcare decisions for you if you’re unable to communicate your wishes.
Relevant law: O.C.G.A 31-32-4
Step 3: Leave Instructions in case of permanent unconsciousness or terminal illness
Use this section to explicitly state your healthcare wishes. You must indicate how you’d want healthcare professionals to proceed in the following situations:
- If you fall into a permanently unconscious state with very little chance of recovery
- If you are in an incurable, terminal condition
Georgia law mandates that, if you’re pregnant, this section of your advance directive will not be carried out as you’ve indicated unless the fetus is not viable.
Indicate your wishes by answering the following questions:
Do you want to receive life-sustaining treatments?
Life-sustaining treatments are meant to support your body with essential functions (like oxygen, water, and nutrition) to delay the process of dying. Indicate whether you want your physician to prolong your life or allow natural death to occur.
Do you want relief from pain?
Ensure you understand pain management at the end of life and indicate if you’d like healthcare professionals to provide pain relief should you need it.
Do you want to donate your organs and tissues?
Specify whether you want to donate some, all, or none of your organs and tissues if they can be used for transplant after your death.
Do you have any other wishes?
Take a moment to consider what other common medications and treatments you would or wouldn’t like to receive. You can also use this section to share your personal or religious values relating to health care.
Do you want to include final arrangements?
Decide whether you want to leave specific instructions regarding burial/cremation and other aspects of your post-death decisions (like funeral arrangements).
If you don’t want your healthcare agent to make these decisions for you, you can include the contact information of the person who should decide your final arrangements.
Do you want to designate a primary physician?
If you have a preferred primary care physician, you can include their contact information in your advance directive form.
Step 4: Sign the form
Do you need a witness or notary signatures?
Yes, your advance directive needs to be signed by two witnesses who are of sound mind and at least 18 years of age. Your witnesses don’t need to be present together or when you sign, but they must be able to confirm that you’ve signed willingly.
Relevant law: O.C.G.A. § 31-32-5
Who can’t be a witness?
The following people can’t serve as your witness:
- Your agent
- Your physician
- Someone who will inherit from you after your death
- Anyone directly involved with your health care
Additionally, only one of your two witnesses can be employed by or affiliated with your healthcare facility.
Relevant law: O.C.G.A. 31-32-5
How long is your Georgia Advance Directive effective?
If you wish, you can include an end date for your advance directive. Otherwise, it will remain effective until your death, including whatever post-death decisions you authorize your agent to make on your behalf.
How to Revoke a Georgia Advance Directive
In Georgia, there are a number of ways you can revoke your advance directive. If you’re physically unable to do so, you can direct someone else to take the action in your presence.
The possible methods are as follows:
- Tear, burn, or otherwise destroy the original document
- Create a revocation of power of attorney document
- Create a new advance directive (if you want to change the terms)
- Tell your doctor that you wish to revoke your directive
- Have an adult witness write and sign a confirmation of your intent to revoke and inform your healthcare agent
No matter which method you choose, if you’re currently receiving treatment when you decide to revoke your advance directive, you must inform your physician so they can void their copies of your directive and complete the revocation.
In Georgia, getting married or divorced may affect your healthcare agent’s powers. If you assign your spouse as your healthcare agent, divorcing them automatically revokes their powers. On the other hand, getting married revokes your healthcare agent’s powers unless the person you marry is your agent.
Relevant law: O.C.G.A. 31-32-6