Full question:
My mother has Alzhiemers and was unable to have contaract surgery due to her inability to remember what she was to have done. She does have a durable POA w/ healthcare provisions prepared by a lawyer and signed by my mother. In that document it requires a her primary physician to write an affidavit that she has been personally been examined and that she is unable to manage her property. Is there a specific form that the Dr needs to fill out or is an letter stating the above sufficient? And does that document need to be notorized?
- Category: Power of Attorney
- Subcategory: Advanced Health Care Directive
- Date:
- State: Florida
Answer:
An affidavit must be signed in front of a notary. According to Florida law (Fla. Stat. § 765.204), a person is presumed capable of making their own health care decisions unless determined incapacitated. If there are questions about a person's capacity, the attending physician must evaluate it. If the physician concludes that the person lacks capacity, this evaluation should be recorded in the medical record. If there's uncertainty, a second physician should also evaluate the individual. If both agree on incapacity, the health care facility must notify the designated health care surrogate or attorney in fact.
The surrogate's authority begins when incapacity is determined and continues until the person regains capacity. If the attending physician later decides the person has regained capacity, the surrogate's authority ends but can restart if the person loses capacity again.
In summary, the physician's affidavit should confirm the incapacity and must be notarized.
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.