Life Support Decisions and Your Illinois Health Care Power of Attorney
Life Support Decisions and Your Illinois Health Care Power of Attorney
By Jeffrey G. Cox, Springfield attorney and past president of the Sangamon County Bar Association
A health care power of attorney lets you choose who makes medical decisions for you if you can't make them yourself. One of the hardest of those decisions is whether to start, continue, or stop life support. Illinois gives you a simple way to put your wishes on paper, so the person you trust isn't left guessing.
Jeff Cox prepares health care powers of attorney for families across Springfield and Central Illinois. His career has been spent working with Illinois statutes, including helping draft state law, and he walks clients through each choice on the form so the document says what they actually mean.'
What "life support" means
Life support, or life-sustaining treatment, is care that keeps you alive without curing the underlying illness. Common examples are a breathing machine, a feeding tube, CPR, and dialysis. Comfort care and pain relief are different. Your agent can always ask for those.
The two choices on the Illinois form
The Illinois Statutory Short Form Power of Attorney for Health Care asks you to choose one of two statements about life support. The choice is optional.
If you choose | You're telling your agent |
"The quality of my life is more important than the length of my life." | If you are unconscious and unlikely to recover, you don't want treatment that only prolongs your life. You still want comfort care and pain relief. |
"Staying alive is more important to me, no matter how sick I am, how much I am suffering…" | You want your life prolonged as long as reasonable medical care allows. |
If neither statement fits, you can leave this part blank and let your agent decide, or add your own instructions. Some people write about specific treatments, religious beliefs, or situations like advanced dementia.
When your agent can step in
The form also asks when your agent's authority begins:
Only when you can't make decisions yourself. This is the default if you don't check a box. A physician decides when that point has been reached.
Only when you can't decide, but with access to your medical records and doctors now.
Starting now, and continuing after you can no longer decide.
Choosing the right agent
Pick someone who will follow your wishes even when family members disagree or emotions run high. That may not be your closest relative. The form lets you name backup agents, called successor agents, in case your first choice can't serve. Most important, talk with them. A form works best when your agent already knows what you want.
Questions about your own health care power of attorney?
What happens if you don't have one
Without a health care power of attorney, Illinois law picks a decision-maker for you under the Health Care Surrogate Act. The order starts with a court-appointed guardian, then your spouse, then your adult children, then your parents, and continues through siblings, grandchildren, and close friends.
That can cause problems. Adult children may disagree with each other. A surrogate can only decide to stop life support if you have a qualifying condition, such as a terminal illness or permanent unconsciousness. Disputes can end up in court, at the worst possible time for a family.
How a living will and a POLST fit in
Document | What it does |
Health care power of attorney | Names a person to make decisions for you, guided by your wishes |
Living will | States that you don't want death-delaying procedures if you have a terminal condition. It does not name a decision-maker. |
POLST | A medical order signed by you (or your agent) and your health care practitioner, usually for people with a serious illness, telling emergency crews and hospitals what treatment you want |
A POLST does not replace a power of attorney. Many people near the end of life have both. Starting in 2026, Illinois also allows a POLST to be completed and signed electronically.
Signing it correctly
The Illinois form needs your signature land one adult witness. It does not need to be notarized. The witness cannot be your agent or backup agent, a relative of you or your agents, your doctor or other treating provider, or an owner or operator of a facility where you live or receive care.
What to do now
Decide who you trust to speak for you, and choose a backup.
Think through life support and which statement on the form fits you.
Talk with your agent about your wishes.
Give copies to your agent, your doctor, and your hospital or health system.
Review it after a marriage, divorce, diagnosis, or move.
Ready to put your wishes in writing?
About the author
Jeff Cox is a Springfield attorney who helps Central Illinois families plan for the decisions no one wants to face.
Past President of the Sangamon County Bar Association
Licensed in Illinois since 2008
Former Bureau Chief and Administrative Law Judge at the Illinois Department of Agriculture
Co-drafter of the Illinois Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act
Local: his office is on Wabash Avenue in Springfield
Talk to Jeff about your estate plan.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every situation is different, and prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
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