What is the Difference Between a Health Care Directive and a Living Will?

 Posted on January 22, 2025 in Estate Planning

Health care directives and living wills are two important documents that address health care decisions. However, they serve distinct purposes and play different roles in an estate plan. If you are considering how you would like to plan for the future, speak with a knowledgeable Illinois estate planning lawyer about how these differ and why you may want to consider both.

What is a Health Care Directive?

A health care directive is the general term for any legal document that includes instructions for your medical care and typically includes several aspects. You can designate a health care agent or proxy who can make decisions for you if you become incapacitated  — whether permanently or temporarily — and cannot make or communicate the decisions for yourself. This is someone you need to trust will make choices about medical care based on your preferences, and can advocate for you in end-of-life situations.

Your health care directive can also include a living will, as well as specific preferences you may have about organ donation, whether you would want life-sustaining treatment, and under what circumstances. If you want a Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) order, this can also be included in your health care directive. 

What is a Living Will?

A living will is an advance directive focused on your preferences regarding end-of-life care. It outlines what types of treatment you would or would not want to be administered if you are in a persistent vegetative state or become terminally ill and unable to communicate your wishes. In short, it outlines whether or not you want life-sustaining measures like feeding tubes or ventilation to be used to keep you alive. A living will is a way for you to provide clear instructions about your medical care without appointing someone else to make those decisions on your behalf.

How are Health Care Directives and Living Wills Different?

These two fairly similar documents differ in three key areas:

Purpose

Health care directives are broader documents that designate an agent who can make decisions on your behalf. It can also include instructions about life-sustaining treatment. Living wills, on the other hand, are specifically focused on your end-of-life care preferences.

Scope

Health care directives cover a wide range of medical decisions and can refer to long-term or temporary health care, as well as end-of-life choices. Living wills are strictly limited to end-of-life decisions.

Decision Maker

In a health care directive, you designate someone who will make decisions for you. In a living will, you make your own decisions that are fulfilled by the doctors who read the instructions you have left.

Contact a DuPage County, IL Estate Planning Lawyer

If you are trying to create a comprehensive plan for your medical preferences to be respected, speak with a Lombard, IL estate planning attorney about whether you should have a health care directive and living will. While they might seem similar, they address different matters and can both be necessary in different situations. At A. Traub & Associates, we are dedicated to giving our clients the peace of mind that comes from knowing their wishes will be honored. Call us at 630-426-0196 to schedule a private consultation.