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In order to honor an advance directive, your physician, hospital or nursing home must be aware of it and what is says. Arizona’s Advance Directive Registry is a way for your advance directive to be available where and when it is needed. Through your password, you decide who can read your directive that is stored in the Registry.
What is the Advance Directive Registry?
Why keep an Advance Directive in the Registry?
Who has access to the Registry?
What if I am unable to communicate?
What Advance Directives are included in the Registry?
Why are only these directives acceptable?
What about the Pre-hospital Medical Care Directive (Orange Form)?
What if an Advance Directive gets lost?
What if an Advance Directive gets filed wrong?
What if I change my mind?
What does it cost?
What is the Advance Directive Registry?
The Arizona Advance Directive Registry is a place to store your advance directive – a virtual file cabinet – so that your advance directive is available when needed.
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Why keep an Advance Directive in the Registry?
When you complete an Advance Directive, you should give copies of your health care (medical) power of attorney, to your family and friends and to your doctor. If you are in an accident or very ill, and unable to speak for yourself, your advance directive will speak for you.
If a copy of your advance directive is not readily available when needed, the doctors or hospital caring for you can look up your directive in the Registry and then follow your instructions.
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Who has access to the Registry?
You decide who has access to your advance directives. You will have a password and you decide when to share your password. You might want to give the password to your health care (medical) power of attorney, to your close family and friends, and to your doctor. No one can look at your advance directive without your password.
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What if I am unable to communicate?
If you are unable to communicate, your doctor or health care provider may use the password on your wallet card to access the registry and review your advance directive.
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What Advance Directives are included in the Registry?
The Arizona State Legislature has defined several advance directives and these can be included in the Registry:
1. Health Care (Medical) Power of Attorney
2. Mental Health Care Power of Attorney
3. Living Will
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Why are only these directives acceptable?
These directives are defined by specific Arizona laws and have special legal status. With a Health Care (Medical) Power of Attorney and the Mental Health Care Power of Attorney forms, you appoint someone to make decisions for you if you are incapacitated.
The Living Will form lets you choose health care that you would want to accept or refuse if you are unable to speak for yourself. Financial documents, such as a Last Will & Testament, or a Living Trust, are not accepted into the Advance Directive Registry. Only directives that concern your future health care and health care choices are included.
Advance directives may be combined into one large document, or you may have a separate Living Will, Health Care (Medical) Power of Attorney, and Mental Health Care Power of Attorney documents. Many different forms of these documents are available, and each can be entered into the registry.
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What about the Pre-hospital Medical Care Directive (Orange Form)?
The Pre-Hospital Medical Care Directive, also known as the Orange form or Orange card, is a special Advance Directive. This form says that, if your heart stops beating or if you stop breathing, that you do NOT want to receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). This special form, which is bright orange in color, notifies the paramedics and emergency medical services people that this choice has been made.
Because the paramedics respond quickly to an emergency medical situation, the Pre-Hospital Medical Care Directive (Orange form) must be immediately available for them to see. Pre-Hospital Medical Care Directives (Orange forms) will not be stored in the Registry, but should be kept “on-hand” in a person’s home or wallet.
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What if an Advance Directive gets lost?
You should always keep the original copy of your advance directive in a safe place. You should make copies for your doctors, the hospital, your family and close friends. Do not send the original advance directive document to the Secretary of State’s Office – make a legible copy and submit a copy with the registration agreement form.
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What if an Advance Directive gets filed wrong?
After your Advance Directive has been stored in the Registry, you will be asked to “double-check” to be sure it has been put in completely and accurately. You will be asked to notify the Secretary of State’s office that your advance directive has been stored correctly before the process is final.
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What if I change my mind?
You can always change your mind. You just need to say so to your doctor or to the medical team taking care of you. As long as you can speak for yourself, you are in charge of your decisions.
If you wish to change your advance directive, you just need to complete a new one. When you complete a new advance directive, the new one becomes the active one. The advance directive with the most recent date is the one that will be followed.
You should send the new one into the Registry as soon as you can, and the new one will replace the old one on file.
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What does it cost?
There is no fee for storing your advance directive in the Registry.
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Ready to Register? Get the Registration Agreement online.
If you have further questions, please contact the Office of the Arizona Secretary of State: 602-542-4285 or 800-458-5842
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