Estate Plans for Teens? You bet!
When my daughter reached adulthood at 18, it marked an important milestone for both of us. In many ways, an 18-year-old truly is an adult. They can vote. They can join the military. They become responsible for their own medical decisions.
In other ways, they are still our little ones. They rely on us to help them with key decision-making. Most adult teens depend on our assistance for food, shelter and more. They don’t quite know how to handle many real-world adult situations. And it’s this list—the things that they still need us for—that keeps me up at night. That’s why, as soon as my daughter turned 18, I got her set up with estate documents.
Most people think of estate plans as end-of-life necessities. But the documents protecting people while they are still alive—such as a Medical Power of Attorney (designating another person to make medical decisions on your behalf if you are incapacitated) and a HIPAA Release (designating people who are allowed to have access to your medical information)—can be a far more important part of a comprehensive estate plan. We rely on these documents while we’re still here, living our lives, but unable to help ourselves. And it’s these documents that our adult teenagers need.
Let me give you an example: Your son is off at college in another state. He’s in a car accident and ends up in the hospital. You immediately call the hospital for updates. Unfortunately, he’s 19. The university hospital strictly adheres to HIPAA regulations and refuses to provide you with information about your son’s current state or prognosis. You can’t help him because you can’t get the information you need to make an informed decision. This sounds far-fetched, but it isn’t. It happens all too often. Hospitals and doctors’ offices (especially those on college campuses) stringently enforce HIPAA regulations and routinely refuse to give medical information to family members without consent.
That’s why every adult, whether 18 or 80, needs to have a Medical Power of Attorney and a HIPAA Release in place. We all need to know that in our time of need, someone will be able to help us with decisions that could affect the rest of our lives.
As a parent, I hope that my daughter will continue to designate me as her agent in these documents. But even if she chooses to designate someone else, just knowing that she has them in place gives me peace of mind, especially as she moves off to college this fall.
You can talk to a lawyer to learn more about how to set your adult teens up for success while giving yourself the peace of mind of knowing you can still be there for them. We’re happy to help!
