Maryland Medical Power of Attorney Form [PDF]

The Maryland medical power of attorney, or healthcare power of attorney, is a legal document that grants authority to the agent, or the attorney-in-fact, to make healthcare decisions on behalf of the principal and represent their interests.

The healthcare power of attorney should be issued in the following situations:

When to Issue a Healthcare Power of Attorney

If the principal is of unstable health and wants to authorize someone to be able to make general decisions regarding their healthcare and treatment
If the principal is undergoing serious surgery
If the principal is diagnosed with a terminal condition
If the principal wants to authorize someone to make end-of-life decisions on their behalf

Laws and Legal Requirements for a Medical Power of Attorney in Maryland

Laws and Legal Requirements

Section 5-601 of the Maryland Code, also called the Health Care Decision Act, regulates the status of medical power of attorney in Maryland.

A written medical power of attorney must be acknowledged before at least two witnesses. However, if the principal signs the document electronically, as provided by Section 5-601.1, the witnesses are not needed.

Section 5-604 provides that the principal can revoke the medical power of attorney at any time by making a written or oral statement, by destroying the document, or by issuing a new one.

How to Write a Medical Power of Attorney in Maryland

To make a valid and effective medical power of attorney, your document must be in accordance with Maryland state laws and regulations.

The following section provides a step-by-step guide on drafting a valid and effective medical power of attorney using our template.

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, which you can access and fill out according to your medical preferences. Our document builder will provide you with instructions on how to fill out each field in the medical power of attorney form.

The first step is to fill out the basic information, such as the date of issuing the power of attorney and the principal’s full name, mailing address, and contact details. Here, you can also include a medical power of attorney rights and limitations and define your agent’s scope of authority.

#2. Appoint a Healthcare Representative

In this section, you should provide the basic details about your agent or the attorney-in-fact.

You should include the following:

Your agent’s full name
Your agent’s mailing address
Your agent’s contact details

When appointing an agent, you should choose someone who is of legal age and has the legal capacity to make decisions. Moreover, you should choose a trustworthy person, considering the importance of their authority over your healthcare.

You can appoint your spouse, blood relative, friend, or other person that you trust.

#3. Identify an Alternative Healthcare Representative

This person will act on your behalf and make healthcare decisions in case the primary agent loses legal capacity or is, in other ways, unable to represent you. Here, you should enter your secondary agent's full name, mailing address, and contact details.

The secondary agent should also be an adult with legal capacity. You can appoint one, two, or more people as your secondary agents.

#4. Identify the Witnesses and Have Them Sign the Form

After you have finalized your document, you can print and sign it. The state law enables the principal to sign the document electronically. However, if you are signing the medical power of attorney in a regular way, you should have at least two witnesses acknowledge your signature.

#5. Notarize the Form

The state law doesn’t require a notarization of the medical power of attorney. However, you should still consider having a notary public acknowledge your document since it will provide additional security for all parties involved and prevent potential fraud.