Legal Questions
Who is responsible for keeping my information up to date and correct?
You are solely responsible for the information entered into your medical passport. Health care workers will utilize the information to make decisions about your medical care. It is critical that it be accurate and up to date.
Will doctors honor my Advanced Directives if they only have the Medical Passport and not the paper copies?
Refer to the “State Regulations” for detailed information about each state. Obviously Essential Medical cannot guarantee what physicians will do in various medical situations. However, while politicians write the laws, physicians practice medicine. The reality, in health care, is that rarely do physicians have access to all the legal copies of advanced directives and living wills. Generally in critical situations, physicians utilize every resource available – usually family, friends and primary care physicians – to make what they believe to be the best decisions for you.
Putting your choices and medical information in the Medical Passport, and carrying it with you, gives physicians immediate access to your medical information and your choices about care. They can utilize this information first to care for you and if necessary to call your emergency contact person, Health Care Agent and if necessary verify your witnesses for the states legal purposes.
What if Essential Choices does not meet all the requirements of my state regulations for advanced directives?
Refer to the “State Regulations” for detailed information about each state. Additionally we recommend you consult your physician and your attorney.
One of the guidelines in some states that can easily be addressed with Essential Choices is to have the documents notarized once you print them. Some state regulations are different then Essential Choices. However, the state regulations are written to comply with the federal Patient Self-Determination Act. Although states differ in their approach to advanced directives, the intent is similar: competent patients can determine for themselves what health care they want and do not want. Physicians recognize and understand this right of patients.