No. Wisconsin law prohibits insurers from denying or impairing insurance coverage solely because a health care decision was made by a duly authorized health care agent rather than by the principal.
Under Wis. Stat. § 155.70, an insurer may not deny, modify, or impair health, life, or other insurance...
No. Wisconsin law expressly prohibits a health care provider or health care facility from requiring a person to execute a Health Care Power of Attorney as a condition of receiving health care services.
A hospital, nursing home, clinic, physician, or other health care provider may not condition the provision...
After a Wisconsin Health Care Power of Attorney (HCPOA) has been properly executed, it should be stored and distributed so it is readily available if the principal becomes incapacitated.
Wisconsin law does not require filing the document with a court or recording it with a government office. Best practices...
Yes. The existence of a valid Health Care Power of Attorney (HCPOA) does not prevent the filing of a guardianship petition or the appointment of a guardian, but it significantly affects the court’s analysis because Wisconsin law favors less restrictive alternatives when sufficient.
A court may determine that an...
In Wisconsin, an agent acting under a power of attorney, whether a financial power of attorney under Chapter 244 or a health care power of attorney under Chapter 155, is not automatically liable for decisions made in good faith within the scope of the authority granted, but an agent can be held...
Yes. Under Wisconsin law, a health care power of attorney is generally revocable at any time by the principal, so long as the principal has the capacity to revoke it. Wisconsin recognizes several methods of revocation: canceling, defacing, obliterating, burning, tearing, or otherwise destroying the document with the intent to revoke it;...
Yes. Although a Wisconsin health care agent generally has broad authority to make health care decisions for an incapacitated principal, Chapter 155 imposes several important limitations on that authority.
The principal’s expressed wishes control, and the agent must act in good faith and consistently with the instructions in the...
In Wisconsin, any individual who is at least 18 years old and of sound mind may execute (sign) a Health Care Power of Attorney, provided they do so voluntarily, and a person who has been adjudicated incompetent and has a guardian of the person appointed is presumed not to be of sound...
In Wisconsin, a loved one is considered unable to make legal decisions when they lack legal capacity—meaning they cannot understand, appreciate, or communicate decisions about their personal, financial, or medical affairs at a functional level. Capacity is decision‑specific, not all‑or‑nothing: a person may competently handle simple daily choices yet be unable to...
Even if you are currently in good health, an unexpected illness or injury could leave you unable to make your own medical decisions. A medical power of attorney is a crucial component of your estate plan that allows you to designate a trusted individual (your agent) to make healthcare choices on your...
