Nebraska Statutes 30-3418. Attorney in fact; consult with medical personnel; authority; limitations
(1) In exercising authority under the power of attorney for health care, an attorney in fact shall have a duty to consult with medical personnel, including the attending physician, and thereupon to make health care decisions (a) in accordance with the principal’s wishes as expressed in the power of attorney for health care or as otherwise made known to the attorney in fact or (b) if the principal’s wishes are not reasonably known and cannot with reasonable diligence be ascertained, in accordance with the principal’s best interests, with due regard for the principal’s religious and moral beliefs if known.
Terms Used In Nebraska Statutes 30-3418
- Attorney: shall mean attorney at law. See Nebraska Statutes 49-801
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. Source: OCC
- State: when applied to different states of the United States shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories organized by Congress. See Nebraska Statutes 49-801
(2) Notwithstanding subdivision (1)(b) of this section, the attorney in fact shall not have the authority to consent to the withholding or withdrawing of a life-sustaining procedure or artificially administered nutrition or hydration unless (a) the principal is suffering from a terminal condition or is in a persistent vegetative state and (b) the power of attorney for health care explicitly grants such authority to the attorney in fact or the intent of the principal to have life-sustaining procedures or artificially administered nutrition or hydration withheld or withdrawn under such circumstances is established by clear and convincing evidence.
(3) In exercising any decision, the attorney in fact shall have no authority to withhold or withdraw consent to routine care necessary to maintain patient comfort or the usual and typical provision of nutrition and hydration.