Understanding Idaho's Living Will

A Living Will, sometimes called an Advanced Medical Directive, is a legal document that allows you to state your wishes for the type of end of life care you want if you become so ill or incapacitated that you are no longer able to communicate with your doctor. The Living Will spares your loved ones the burden of trying to guess your wishes, helps avoid conflict among family members advocating different levels of treatment, and protects you from receiving more medical care than you want.

In Idaho, the Living Will comes into effect if (1) you are unable to communicate and (2) a doctor certifies that: 

1. You have an incurable or irreversible injury, disease, illness or condition
2. Your condition is terminal
3. Artificial life-sustaining procedures would serve only to artificially prolong your life, and
4. Your death is imminent whether or not artificial life-sustaining procedures are used; OR
5. You have been diagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative state
   ​

Your Living Will lets you decide now which of the following levels of care you want to receive under those circumstances.  Your options in Idaho are:

1. You want to receive all artificial life-sustaining procedures, including artificial and non-artificial nutrition and hydration.
2. You do not want to receive artificial life-sustaining procedures, but you would like to receive nutrition and/or hydration through artificial (such as a feeding tube) and non-artificial procedures.
3. You want all medical treatment, care, and procedures to be withheld or withdrawn, including withdrawal of the administration of artificial nutrition and hydration.
   
   

Regardless of which election you make, your medical providers will continue to provide comfort care, such as pain medication.

The election you make is entirely up to you. It is a personal decision and there is no “right” or “wrong” choice.  And, importantly, you can always change your election if you decide you want to make a different choice.

If you’d like more information on making these decisions, there are several resources available on the web. A few of these resources include:

• Honoring Choices Idaho
• National Institute of Health: Advanced Planning Healthcare Directives
• Compassionate Choices: Advanced Planning Guide
• Cancer.org: Types of Advanced Health Care Directives 
• Mayo Clinic: Living wills and advance directives for medical decisions