By Barry Zimmer on March 2nd, 2018 in Advance Directives, Digital Asset Planning, Estate Planning, Estate Planning for Young Children, Wills & Trusts
Imagine it’s time to send your son or daughter off to college. It’s a time of great pride and joy, and perhaps the first step on their road to independence. And while that independence is important to you and your child alike, you also want to be there for them when they need help. But if you don’t plan properly, you might not be able to.
When your child turns 18, he or she becomes an “adult” in the state of Ohio (and most other states), and the relationship between child and parent(s) legally changes. One of the most noteworthy, and frightening aspects of this is that you as a parent do not have rights to information about your son or daughter, including medical information that you had when he or she was a minor. In short, if your son or daughter – away at school – had to be taken to a hospital, then without the proper legal documents you would not be entitled to information about his or her medical condition. If your child were injured or sick for an extended period, then you would not be able to help with his or her legal and financial affairs without the proper legal documents prepared in advance of the need.
These legal aspects of a child “becoming of age” are often overlooked in the excitement of preparing for college. Even as college students age, these concerns are often ignored because they are considered to be for older persons. After all, what young adult thinks about planning for serious or life-threatening medical conditions, or incapacitation?
The Solution
The Zimmer Law Firm has created a quick and easy solution that we call The Young Adult Protection Plan™. This program provides parents with the resources necessary to have instant access to information about their child when it’s needed most, and to act for them when they cannot act for themselves. The Plan includes a HIPAA Release, Property Power of Attorney, Health Care Power of Attorney, and Living Will. These are the legal and medical-legal documents that a parent might need to see to the needs of their child during injury, recovery or incapacity. We also make it possible for 24/7/365 instant access to the medical-legal documents essential to a child’s medical care and well-being. And it couldn’t be more convenient to access.