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California's Health Care Decisions Law Fact Sheet. This fact sheet is an overview of some of the key elements of the Health Care Decisions Law of 2000. Additional details can be obtained through the resources listed at the end.
California law provides individuals the ability to ensure that their health care wishes are known and considered if they become unable to make these decisions themselves. In California, advance directives are the legally recognized format for “living wills.”
This policy guides California medical professionals through a procedure for selecting a surrogate decision maker when patients lose decision-making capacity and lack a written advance directive for health care or a court-appointed conservator.
Emergency Exception When a patient lacks capacity to make a health care decision and treatment is immediately necessary to prevent death or permanent disability, or to alleviate severe pain, and a surrogate decision maker cannot be contacted, treatment may proceed because it is an emergency. The treatment is limited to that which is necessary ...
STATE OF CALIFORNIA. HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AGENCY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES. PUB 325 (12/16) Your Right To Make Decisions About Medical Treatment. This brochure explains your right to make healthcare decisions and how you can plan now for your medical care if you are unable to speak for yourself in the future. A federal law requires us ...
• Before implementing a decision made by a decision maker, the supervising health care provider must, if possible, communicate to the patient the decision made and the identity of the person making it (Probate Code § 4730)
The patient with decision-making capacity is the appropriate decision-maker unless the patient has delegated that authority to another. For patients who have lost decision-making capacity, the following hierarchy should prevail: LEGALLY AUTHORIZED DECISION MAKERS*.
