The Pritt Law Blog

Most people who put this off aren’t careless. They assume their family will know what to do. The trouble is

that when you can’t speak for yourself, the hospital doesn’t ask your family to work it out. Under West Virginia

law, your doctor or advanced nurse practitioner selects a surrogate from a list that starts with your spouse and

moves through adult children, parents, siblings, and grandchildren.

If your family sees things differently, they can end up arguing over your care at the worst possible time, and the

person you would have picked may not be the one in the room making the call.

A Medical Power of Attorney settles that question while you can still answer it. You name one person, you

write down what matters to you, and your family is spared from guessing. West Virginia’s law tells your agent

to act on your wishes, and that is far easier to do when those wishes are written down.

It takes one meeting to get started. Chris Pritt Law will walk you through choosing an agent, put your instructions in

writing, and make sure the document is signed and witnessed the way the law requires. With your permission, we also

submit it to the West Virginia e-Directive Registry. If you are working on a broader estate plan, we draft your medical

directives alongside your will, trust, and durable power of attorney so the documents agree.