What this guide covers
State Advance Directive Forms helps patients and beginner advocates find the right legal documents for their state—living will, healthcare power of attorney, and POLST-style orders—and avoid outdated or invalid copies.
This site does not host every state PDF in one place because forms change and witness rules differ. Instead, you will learn which document types you need, where official versions live, and how to sign and share them so hospitals actually use them.
Start with conversations in Advance Care Planning, then use this guide to download and complete paperwork.
This is educational information, not legal advice. When stakes are high, a local attorney can review completed forms.
Why state forms matter
Advance directive laws are state laws. Witness requirements, default surrogate lists, whether a notary is required, and the words courts expect on the page all depend on where the patient lives and signs—not where children live.
A generic internet form may look professional but omit required witness lines or use terms your state no longer recognizes. Hospitals may delay accepting it while legal teams review.
Most states honor properly executed documents from another state, but facilities feel safest with a current local form when the patient can still sign. See Capacity, Surrogates & Guardianship if signing capacity is in question.
Types of forms you may need
Healthcare power of attorney (healthcare proxy, medical agent) names someone to decide when the patient cannot. See Healthcare Power of Attorney / Proxy.
Living will (directive to physicians) states treatment preferences for future serious illness. See Living Wills.
Many states combine proxy and living will instructions in one advance directive or durable power of attorney for healthcare packet. Read the title on page one so you know what you are signing.
DNR and POLST / MOLST / POST are usually separate medical orders for people who are seriously ill now, signed with a clinician—not the same PDF as a living will for a healthy adult. See DNR, POLST & MOLST.
HIPAA authorization is often a separate hospital or clinic form for sharing records while the patient is alert. See Permissions, HIPAA & Decision-Making Access.
Find official forms
Trusted download sources
CaringInfo (National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization) maintains free advance directive packets for every state with instructions. That is a common starting point for families.
Your state health department, bar association, or hospital association may publish the same or newer versions. Search "[state name] advance directive form" or "[state name] healthcare power of attorney PDF" and prefer .gov or established nonprofit hosts.
For POLST-style orders, use polst.orgstate links or your state's POLST program page—not a living will template.
PREPARE for Your Care offers step-by-step planning that ends with printable state-appropriate documents in many regions.
Forms to avoid
Skip random blog PDFs, photocopies with cut-off margins, and forms pre-filled with someone else's name. Skip versions marked for a different state unless an attorney advises otherwise.
Facility-branded summaries are helpful education but may not replace state statutory forms unless the statute allows them.
Combined vs separate documents
If your state offers a combined advance directive, one signing ceremony may cover both proxy naming and living will instructions— still read every page. Some families also add a separate HIPAA release from the clinic.
If your state uses separate forms, complete both. Naming a proxy without treatment preferences leaves gaps; preferences without a proxy leave no one clearly authorized to interpret gray areas.
POLST / MOLST is usually separate
Do not assume one advance directive replaces a POLST. POLST programs require clinician signature and specific training for use in EMS and emergency departments. Download the POLST form for your state only when the care team agrees it is appropriate.
Healthy adults doing routine planning typically file a living will and proxy first and leave POLST for later serious illness.
Witnesses, notary & signing rules
Read the instruction page that comes with the state packet. Some states require two witnesses, prohibit certain relatives as witnesses, or require a notary for the healthcare proxy but not the living will.
Sign in ink unless the statute allows electronic signing in your state. Use the patient's legal name. Date every signature line. Do not sign blank forms in advance for someone else to fill in later.
If the patient can only mark with an X, state rules may allow that with extra steps—ask the form instructions or a notary.
Moving or out-of-state forms
After a move, download the new state's forms and sign while the patient has capacity if possible. Keep old documents in a file labeled with the former state until an attorney says otherwise.
Snowbirds with two residences should ask which state clinicians consider the primary home for healthcare decisions and follow that state's guidance.
State registries & storage
Some states run advance directive registries where you upload signed forms for hospitals to search. Registration is optional and does not replace giving copies to family and clinicians.
Whether or not your state has a registry, scan PDFs to a shared family folder, upload to the patient portal when offered, and place a paper copy in a hospital go-bag. Instructions are in Advance Care Planning and Healthcare Power of Attorney / Proxy.
What advocates should do
Help download the right packet
Confirm the patient's current state of residence. Print clear copies or save PDFs with the state name in the file title. Bring instructions plus forms to a calm appointment—not only a crisis waiting room unless necessary.
Help the patient read aloud what each section means. Schedule a primary care or attorney review if choices are complex.
After signing
Distribute copies to the proxy, backup proxy, clinicians, and anyone the patient chooses. Discuss whether a POLST is also needed based on current illness, not fear alone.
Revisit forms after divorce, death of a proxy, new diagnosis, or major surgery—dates on the signature page tell hospitals how current the plan is.
Scenarios beginners run into
Downloaded wrong state
Void copies for the wrong state in writing if they were signed, or clearly label them "superseded" after signing the correct packet. Hospitals get nervous when multiple states appear.
Form from 1998
Compare to the current CaringInfo or state site version. Statutes may have changed witness rules. Re-sign a current form if the patient can participate.
Only has POLST, no proxy
Add a healthcare proxy and living will if the patient can still sign. POLST alone does not name who decides when situations are not covered on the form.
Lawyer drafted custom document
Custom documents can be excellent. Give copies to clinicians and confirm the hospital legal team recognizes the format. Keep a one-page summary of proxy name and phone for EMS.
Could not find a notary
Check whether your state actually requires a notary for that document type. Banks, shipping stores, and hospital social work sometimes help. Witness-only states do not need a notary stamp.
Hospital gave its own form
Hospital forms may work for that system but might not travel. Still complete state statutory forms for home and EMS. Ask medical records to scan everything into one chart.
Situation: A son in Texas wants his mother in Ohio to name him as proxy before surgery next month.
What he does:He downloads the Ohio combined advance directive from CaringInfo, mails two copies to his sister who lives nearby, and schedules a video call while their mother signs with two adult witnesses per Ohio instructions. They fax one copy to the surgeon's office, upload one to the patient portal, and email PDFs to the son. They confirm Ohio does not use POLST yet for her condition and revisit after surgery if the cardiologist recommends it.
Related guides
Advance Care Planning, Living Wills, Healthcare Power of Attorney / Proxy, DNR, POLST & MOLST, Goals of Care Conversations, Capacity, Surrogates & Guardianship, and Permissions, HIPAA & Decision-Making Access.
Official resources
CaringInfo — Advance directives by state (free PDFs). National POLST — Forms by state. PREPARE for Your Care — Step-by-step planning. American Bar Association — Health care decision making. NIH National Institute on Aging — Healthcare directives.
For your state's registry, if any, search "[state] advance directive registry" on an official .gov site.