An Alaska medical power of attorney, or a healthcare power of attorney, is a legal document that gives your agent or the attorney-in-fact the authority to make healthcare decisions on your behalf in situations where you are not able to make decisions yourself.
The person issuing the medical power of attorney is called the principal. The principal should issue a medical power of attorney in situations where they are facing a life-threatening medical procedure or have been diagnosed with a terminal illness.
However, many parties choose to draft the medical power of attorney, even without the immediate necessity, if they are of old age or in unstable health.
Laws and Legal Requirements for a Medical Power of Attorney in Alaska
Laws and Legal Requirements
Title 13, Chapter 52 of the Alaska Statutes regulates the status of the medical power of attorney in Alaska.
The most important provisions of this chapter are about the signing requirements for the medical power of attorney. The principal must sign the document before at least two witnesses and a notary public.
However, the witness cannot be your agent, healthcare provider, or one of their employees. (Section 13.52.010)
Moreover, Section 13.52.020 provides that the principal can revoke the medical power of attorney at any time, as long as they have the mental capacity to take such action.
How to Write a Medical Power of Attorney in Alaska
In Alaska, the easiest way to issue a medical power of attorney is by following the steps below:
How to Write a Medical Power of Attorney
#1. Access the Medical Power of Attorney Form
Here, you will find the medical power of attorney template that you can access and fill out by following the guidelines provided by our advanced legal document builder.
The first step is to fill out the basic information, such as:
Name, address, and contact details of the Principal
Date of issuing the power of attorney
#2. Appoint a Healthcare Representative
In this section, you will be instructed to provide basic information about your attorney-in-fact. You should enter their full name, mailing address, and contact details.
You should choose someone that you can trust, considering the importance of the authority they will have regarding your healthcare.
The attorney-in-fact should be of legal age and have the legal capacity to act. Here, you can include the medical power of attorney rights and limitations that your agent can have.
#3. Identify an Alternative Healthcare Representative
This is the person who will act on your behalf and make healthcare decisions in case the primary agent is not willing or able to represent you.
You can name one, two, or more people as alternative agents by entering their full names, mailing addresses, and contact details. The alternative agent should fulfill the same requirements as the primary agent.
#4. Identify the Witnesses and Have Them Sign the Form
The principal must sign the medical power of attorney form before at least two adult witnesses with legal capacity. Failing to provide witnesses will result in the power of attorney not being legally valid.
The witness cannot be:
Principal’s agent
Principal’s healthcare provider
Employee of the principal’s agent or healthcare provider
#5. Notarize the Form
Finally, the principal’s and witnesses' signatures must be acknowledged by the notary public. The notary will confirm the identity of the parties signing the document and acknowledge that the document was signed by them. This gives authenticity to the document, as required by state law.