Peace of Mind with Your Adult Children

Transitioning to life with adult children can definitely be a roller coaster sometimes!  Balancing the line between protecting and guiding them while also letting them have independence, and even experiencing failure and the natural consequences that come with it can be difficult.  In some ways, we don’t have as much hands-on responsibility for them, but we’re still needed, that’s for sure.

One thing that I tackled recently that has brought me so much more peace of mind is creating the documents that ensure I have the legal rights to access their medical records and make medical and financial decisions for them, should they become incapacitated.  This is such a hard thing to think about, but one that is so important.  

Yes, I’m going to give them space and let them learn on their own (even if it’s the hard way), but what about in the case of a terrible situation that leaves them unable to advocate for themselves?  I need to be able to step in, and now I can.

Take a look at some of these Key Notes, according to Investopedia:

• When your child turns 18, they are considered by law to be an adult and unless you have filed for the appropriate legal paperwork, you will not be entitled to information about their finances, health, or education.

• Anyone over 18 must give written permission for another adult to receive medical information about them, even if the other adult is their parent.

• A medical power of attorney (POA) lets you make decisions about another adult's health if they become incapacitated, while a durable POA allows you to make business decisions for that person.

Were you aware of this?  I knew that they needed to grant me permission to access their education records (FERPA) and access to their medical records at the doctor’s office (HIPAA), but I never really considered what would happen if they were in a terrible accident and we found ourselves at the hospital, unable to make decisions on their behalf!

No thank you - and now I have peace of mind about it, and you can too.  I was very thankful to discover Mama Bear Legal Forms online, and they made it super easy to quickly enter the information (with your adult child, of course), and then easily print the forms off.  Then, we made it a point to head to the bank and get the forms notarized, and we’re now covered.  They walk you through creating the forms for:

• Health Care Directive and Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care

• HIPAA Release Form

• Durable Power of Attorney for Financial Decisions

• FERPA Release

And, it seriously took less than 30 minutes!  You can also add on another state, in case your adult child is in college at an out-of-state university, like mine is.

Another great perk - they also have an app, so I can take pictures of the signed and notarized documents and have them easily accessible within the app for those terrible emergency situations.

This has brought me so much peace of mind that I just had to share it with you (and I updated my Will as well!).  Click here for a link that will give you 20% off to get started on your own forms and you won’t regret it!