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Can Family Overrule an Advance Directive? What You Need to Know

Nash Riggins

Mar 7, 2024

Advance directives are legal documents used to tell doctors and loved ones about the medical treatments you do or don’t want to receive in the future, regardless of how your family members feel about your decisions.

We’ll explain how advance directives work and if and when your family can overrule one. We’ll also go over the rules doctors must adhere to before modifying an advance directive.

Key Takeaways

An advance directive is a legal document clearly outlining your medical wishes or appointing a trusted agent to make decisions for you if you’re unable‌ to.
Generally speaking, family members can’t overrule an advance directive.
In some situations, your healthcare provider might need to modify or change your advance directive.

What Is an Advance Directive?

An advance directive is a legal document patients can use to outline their wishes about receiving medical care if they can no longer communicate those decisions.

There are several different types of advance directives for patients to choose from, but the types you’ll most often encounter are:

Each type of advance directive is structured slightly differently, and it’s also important to note they vary from state to state.

For example, the state you live in might require two witnesses to sign your advance directive to make it valid, while other states might require it to be notarized.

When in doubt, check the requirements in your state to ensure your advance directive follows all the necessary requirements.

Regardless of the type of directive you choose or the guidelines you need to follow, the goal of each advance directive is the same: to empower you to make your own medical decisions.

Can Family Overrule an Advance Directive?

Generally speaking, family members can’t overrule an advance directive. That’s one of the primary benefits of setting one up.

If you have strong beliefs about end-of-life care and do not want certain types of treatments to prolong your life, an advance directive effectively ensures people uphold your wishes.

An advance directive is a legal document. As long as you comply with state requirements to ensure its 100% validity, family members can’t contest its contents.

Likewise, no one is allowed to change what’s included. Only you have the power to make changes to your directive, regardless of your family’s wishes.

Although family members can’t override your advance directive, it’s important to remember you can elect a family member to make medical decisions on your behalf.

This is a type of advance directive called a medical power of attorney.

You’ll often hear this type of directive referred to as a “health care power of attorney” or a “durable power of attorney for health care,” but all of these terms refer to the same type of directive.

David Brillant, a California-based tax attorney and founder of Brillant Law explains:

“A durable power of attorney for health care appoints someone to make medical decisions on your behalf. They provide clarity and guidance for families during difficult times, ensure your healthcare wishes are respected, and can prevent potential legal battles.”

Once a doctor confirms your inability to make your own healthcare choices, this advance directive would kick in, enabling the appointed agent to make decisions on your behalf.

It’s important to communicate your healthcare wishes to your designated agent while you’re able to so they can honor those wishes in the future.

Although a medical power of attorney enables a designated family member to make healthcare choices for you, your family members cannot overrule your power of attorney.

However, appointing a health care agent in your power of attorney doesn’t take away your authority to make your own choices while you can communicate.

As long as a doctor deems you mentally competent, your appointed agent cannot change your directive or make decisions on your behalf. Likewise, you have the ability to change or withdraw your directive at any point.

Can Medical Professionals Overrule an Advance Directive?

Yes, in some cases, medical professionals can overrule your advance directive. But this is a relatively rare occurrence.

Under the US Government’s Patient Self-Determination Act (PSDA), your healthcare providers are legally obligated to inform you of your rights and options around completing an advance directive.

Those same professionals are then obligated to honor your expressed wishes unless those wishes:

Go against your healthcare institution’s policies
Go against the individual conscience of your healthcare provider
Go against acceptable healthcare standards

If any of these exceptions apply to your advance directive, your health care provider or the facility where you receive treatment is required to tell you as soon as possible.

In some situations, you might be able to move to a different hospital or switch doctors to ensure your directive is honored. Otherwise, you might need to modify or change it.

Likewise, your doctor or healthcare agent might need to change your directive if it’s unclear or if there are unexpected complications your directive couldn’t have predicted.

Dr. Kevin Huffman, CEO and founder of Ambari Nutrition explains:

“In some cases, an advance directive might be modified by the healthcare team if there are ambiguities in the document, or if there is an unforeseen shift in the patient’s condition that was not considered at the outset.”

He continues:

“For example, should treatment options evolve such that new treatments are available after the signing of the directive, or if it appears that there might have been a change in the patient’s wishes — if they seem to come around — a healthcare proxy could even make different decisions than those outlined in the living will.”

Talking About Your Wishes With Family Members

As we already mentioned, there aren’t many situations in which family members or doctors can change your advance directive. That's why it’s important to create it early on and talk to your loved ones about your wishes.

Communicating your wishes ensures everyone is on the same page if something happens to you and you cannot make your own decisions in the future, potentially helping you ‌avoid arguments and painful legal battles.

You should also share a copy of your advance directive with your doctors and any medical facility where you regularly receive treatment. This lets your healthcare providers immediately know whether there are any known issues that might prevent them from carrying out your wishes.

That’s where platforms like Trustworthy offer some invaluable support.

Trustworthy is a Family Operating System® that lets you scan important family documents and create digital copies that you can securely store and share as and when required.

For example, let’s say you create and upload a copy of your living will.

You can then grant secure access to this document to members of your family, your attorney, and your regular doctor, ensuring everyone understands your wishes in advance. They’ll also always have an up-to-date version if you change your directive.

Ready to learn more? Take a look at Trustworthy’s wide range of features to explore how it could take control over your medical future.

Frequently Asked Questions

When can an advance directive be overruled?

Family members can’t overrule an advance directive, but your medical team may be able to change your directive if it’s ambiguous or clashes with their policies or beliefs.

Is an advance directive legally binding?

Generally speaking, yes. If you follow the validation requirements in your state, your advance directive is normally legally binding unless your medical team is unable to carry out your exact wishes.

Which factors could mean an advance directive is not valid?

An advance directive might be invalid if the patient withdraws it while they still have capacity, or if the individual fails to follow state requirements around creating or submitting their directive.