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On Tue, 25 Mar 1997 12:39:43 -0500 Camilla Flintermann writes: . . . .In addition to Living Wills, there is a document which is >LEGAL in many states called a Durable Power of Attorney for Health >CAre. It allows one to specify the treatment one would or would not want in >case one is unable to speak for her/himself, and appoints another person to >be a "proxy" and speak for one.It may be changed at any time while one >is competent, BTW. A great blessing for patients AND for families. I just want to add that the key words here are "any time while one is competent." If you choose to have a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care, or a Durable Power of Attorney including health care, the document _must_ be written and signed while one is still considered competent. The Durable Power of Attorney (including health care) can be written to go into affect after one is considered incompetent and (usually?) includes general Power of Attorney. I'm not an attorney, but assume that the attorneys on this list will correct me if I have misspoken. joyce, daughter of Berlin, who refused to sign a Durable Power of Attorney which included health care in the mistaken belief that he would be giving up all rights to his life and now it's probably too late.