To create a valid health care directive and living will in Connecticut, you need to fulfill certain requirements:

• You must be at least 18 years old
• You need to sign your health care directive and living will
• You should be of sound mind. This means that you are able to understand the consequences of health care decisions and of the legal documents you are signing.
• There must be two witnesses present when you sign your health care directive and living will. They should also sign. Neither of your witnesses should be your conservator or health care representative.

Your Connecticut health care directive and living will does not need to be notarized to be legally valid. To make your living will self-proving in Connecticut, you and your witnesses need to swear to an affidavit in front of a notary public.

Yes, your doctors are required to provide you with comfort care and pain medication to keep you physically comfortable. Your health care providers will provide you with pain alleviation treatment as appropriate. They will do so regardless of whether you have a health care directive and living will.

Yes, in Connecticut, an out-of-state or foreign health care directive and living will is valid. But you must have created it according to the laws of that state or country, or in accordance with Connecticut laws. The provisions in the living will must also not be against Connecticut public policy.

If you have moved from another state, it’s a good opportunity to revise your estate planning documents. That way, you can make sure that they are valid under Connecticut law and reflect your current preferences. With FindLaw, you can create a health care directive and living will customized to Connecticut law for only $35 in under an hour.

Under Connecticut law, your health care directive and living will only become effective if your situation meets both of the following criteria:

• Your attending physician or advanced practice registered nurse received the advance health directive documents.
• The nurse or physician determines, in their professional medical judgment, that you are incapacitated. Note that “incapacitated” refers to a patient who can’t make an informed decision about their health care choices. Further, they do not appreciate the benefits or risks of their treatment options.

So, these criteria establish that your health care directive and living will does not become effective while you can still understand and communicate your health care choices. It only becomes operative in more serious medical situations or where you are unable to communicate.

Yes, you can leave an anatomical gift of your body or part that takes effect after your death. You can leave the anatomical gift for research, transplantation, therapy, or education. If you leave an anatomical gift, this will go into effect upon your death.

You can revoke your health care directive and living will at any time. When you revoke your living will, you should inform your health care representative and any medical care providers who have a copy of it.

To revoke your health care representative designation, you must make a written revocation. You then need to sign the revocation in front of two witnesses. The witnesses must also sign the revocation. A divorce or legal separation will void any designation of your former spouse as your health care representative.

An effective way of revoking your health care directive and living will is to create a new one that revokes anything prior.