When your child turns 18, Indiana law recognizes them as a full legal adult. That includes their medical care. As the parent, you no longer have automatic authority to see their records or make decisions on their behalf, even if you are still on their health insurance and paying their bills.
Here is what changes on that eighteenth birthday, and the three documents that keep the door open.
Why do parents lose medical authority when a child turns 18?
Two federal laws drive it. HIPAA protects a patient’s health information from being shared without permission. State laws of majority, Indiana’s included, make the eighteen-year-old the sole decision-maker for their own care. Together, they move the parent from the center of the conversation to the outside.
Doctors, hospitals, clinics, and insurance companies can talk to your adult child only. Not you. Not without permission.
How can parents keep access after a child turns 18?
The key areas to address:
A HIPAA authorization allows your adult child to name a party or parties who can receive their medical information. Without it, hospitals often cannot confirm a diagnosis, share a treatment plan, or even tell you if your child was admitted.
An Appointment of a Healthcare Representative in Indiana, names the person who speaks for your adult child, medically, if he or she cannot speak for personally. Without one, Indiana gives parents, grandparents, adult children, and siblings an equal vote, and an unresolved dispute can put the decision in front of a judge.
A FERPA release, which is the equivalent to a HIPAA Release for education information. This is one of the least known changes but continues to become more prevalent at universities.
A General Durable Power of Attorney for financial support, as well as other property and planning needs that might arise.
When should my child sign these documents?
Now.
We have made the process very easy. We have created a comprehensive document to address all of the above needs.
Like most planning, it is easy to let this drift to the back burner. However, it is important to put it in place while now, so if you need it, it is there. It doesn’t have to be renewed every year. And, hopefully, it won’t be needed. However, it is better to have it waiting in case you need it, than to need it and not have it.
Talk to an Indiana estate planning attorney
CCSK Law helps families in Northwest Indiana put these pieces in place as part of a Young Adult Life Plan. There is no charge for that initial conversation.
Call (219) 230-3600 to schedule a quick review of your situation.
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