Form · Advance care
Advance directive form by state
What it is, who uses it, and field-by-field help. Publisher: Each state (statute, health department, or attorney general). Links checked October 23, 2026.
Quick answer
An advance directive is a legal document that records the medical care you want if you cannot speak for yourself, and usually names a health care agent. Each state sets its own rules and many publish a form; use your state's. A living will and a medical power of attorney are the two common parts.
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At a glance
- What it covers
- Treatment wishes (living will) and a health care agent (medical power of attorney)
- Who sets the rules
- Your state
- Witnesses or notary
- Set by state law; the state form says which
- Different from
- POLST, a medical order signed by a clinician for people with serious illness
- Government form
- None published nationally; see the links below
Who uses it
- Any adult planning for future care
- Families and health care agents
- Hospitals and clinics that keep a copy in the record
Common parts
- Living will (treatment wishes)
- Which treatments you want or do not want, such as CPR, breathing machines, or tube feeding, in situations the form describes.
- Health care agent (medical power of attorney)
- The person who makes decisions for you if you cannot, and alternates.
- Signature and witnesses
- Your signature and the witnesses or notary your state requires.
Advance directive forms in 40 states
| State | Form | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Advance Directive for Health Care (Living Will and Health Care Proxy) | Alabama Department of Public Health |
| Arizona | Life Care Planning: Living Will (End of Life Care) | Office of the Arizona Attorney General |
| California | Advance Health Care Directive (California Probate Code Section 4701) | California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney General |
| Connecticut | Advance Directives (combined form: Appointment of Health Care Representative, Living Will or Health Care Instructions, Document of Anatomical Gift, Designation of Conservator of the Person) | Connecticut Office of the Attorney General |
| Delaware | Advance Health-Care Directive | Delaware Department of Health and Social Services, Division of Services for Aging and Adults with Physical Disabilities |
| District of Columbia | § 7-622. Declaration: Execution; form (statutory declaration text) | Council of the District of Columbia (D.C. Law Library, Code of the District of Columbia) |
| Florida | Living Will (765.303 Suggested form of a living will) | Florida Legislature (Online Sunshine, The Florida Statutes) |
| Georgia | Georgia Advance Directive for Health Care | Georgia Department of Human Services, Division of Aging Services |
| Hawaii | Hawai‘i Advance Health Care Directive Form | Hawaii State Department of Health, Executive Office on Aging |
| Idaho | Idaho Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare and Living Will (Version 2.2, Updated March 2025) | Idaho Department of Health and Welfare (Idaho Healthcare Directive Registry) |
| Illinois | Declaration (Illinois Living Will Act, 755 ILCS 35/3) | Illinois General Assembly (Illinois Compiled Statutes) |
| Iowa | 144A.3 Declaration relating to use of life-sustaining procedures (statutory form) | Iowa Legislature (Iowa Code) |
| Kansas | 65-28,103 Declaration (living will statutory form) | Kansas Office of Revisor of Statutes |
| Kentucky | Living Will Directive (KRS 311.625 Form of living will directive) | Kentucky General Assembly (Kentucky Revised Statutes) |
| Louisiana | Declaration (R.S. 40:1151.2 illustrative form) | Louisiana State Legislature |
| Maine | §5-805. Optional form (Advance Health Care Directive) | Maine Legislature (Maine Revised Statutes) |
| Maryland | Maryland Advance Directive: Planning for Future Health Care Decisions (Health-General §5-603) | Maryland General Assembly (Department of Legislative Services, Annotated Code of Maryland) |
| Minnesota | 145C.16 Suggested Form (Health Care Directive) | Minnesota Office of the Revisor of Statutes |
| Missouri | 459.015 Declaration (sample form) | Missouri Revisor of Statutes |
| Montana | 50-9-103. Declaration relating to use of life-sustaining treatment (statutory form) | Montana Legislature (Montana Code Annotated) |
| Nebraska | 20-404 Declaration (Rights of the Terminally Ill Act form) | Nebraska Legislature |
| Nevada | Advance Health-Care Directive (NRS 162A.855 Form) | Nevada Legislature (Nevada Revised Statutes) |
| New Hampshire | New Hampshire Advance Directive Form (RSA 137-J:20, Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care and Living Will) | New Hampshire General Court (RSA) |
| New Jersey | Instruction Directive | New Jersey Department of Health (form by the New Jersey Commission on Legal and Ethical Problems in the Delivery of Health Care) |
| New York | Health Care Proxy: Appointing Your Health Care Agent in New York State | New York State Department of Health |
| North Carolina | Advance Directive for a Natural Death ("Living Will") (G.S. 90-321(d1)) | North Carolina General Assembly |
| North Dakota | Health Care Directive (N.D.C.C. 23-06.5-17 Optional health care directive form) | North Dakota Legislative Branch (North Dakota Century Code) |
| Oklahoma | Advance Directive for Health Care (63 O.S. §3101.4) | Oklahoma State Courts Network (OSCN, Oklahoma Statutes Title 63) |
| Oregon | Oregon Advance Directive for Health Care (ORS 127.529 Form of advance directive) | Oregon State Legislature (Oregon Revised Statutes, Chapter 127) |
| Pennsylvania | Durable Health Care Power of Attorney and Health Care Treatment Instructions (Living Will) (20 Pa.C.S. § 5471 Example) | Pennsylvania General Assembly (Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes) |
| Rhode Island | Declaration (§ 23-4.11-3 Declaration relating to use of life sustaining procedures) | State of Rhode Island General Assembly (R.I. General Laws) |
| South Carolina | Declaration of a Desire for a Natural Death (S.C. Code § 44-77-50 Form of declaration) | South Carolina Legislature (South Carolina Code of Laws, Title 44 Chapter 77) |
| South Dakota | Declaration (SDCL 34-12D-3 Declaration--Sample form) | South Dakota Legislature (Legislative Research Council, Codified Laws) |
| Texas | Directive to Physicians and Family or Surrogates (Living Will) | Texas Health and Human Services Commission |
| Utah | Advance Health Care Directive (Utah Code 75A-9-110 Optional form) | Utah State Legislature (Utah Code) |
| Vermont | Advance Directive - Short Form / Long Form (linked from Vermont Department of Health) | Vermont Department of Health |
| Virginia | Advance Medical Directive (§ 54.1-2984 Suggested form of written advance directives) | Virginia General Assembly (Legislative Information System, Code of Virginia) |
| Washington | Health Care Directive (RCW 70.122.030 form) | Washington State Legislature (Revised Code of Washington) |
| West Virginia | Living Will / Medical Power of Attorney / Combined Medical Power of Attorney and Living Will (§16-30-4 forms) | West Virginia Legislature (West Virginia Code) |
| Wisconsin | Declaration to Health Care Professionals (Living Will) (F-00060) | Wisconsin Department of Health Services |
States not listed have no state-published form we could link, or no statutory form.
Related pages
Questions
Do I need a lawyer for an advance directive?
Many states publish a form you can complete without one. Check your state's form for its witness or notary rules.
What is the difference between an advance directive and a POLST?
An advance directive is your own document for future care. A POLST is a medical order your clinician signs for current care when you are seriously ill or frail.