This is a really hard subject for me. I haven't read all of the responses here so if I'm repeating something someone else has posted along these lines, please forgive me. I already posted one response but as I have let some time go by, I did think about a few things that people may not know about and I thought it might be important to include them here. This primarily concerns folks who know they are dying from some sort of terminal disease or who are elderly. There are a couple of things I know of that circumvent some aspects of a Living Will or even a Trust; healthcare powers of attorney and HIPAA forms. I learned the hard way that these two things can put a real wrench into your last wishes and even give a person legal right to put you down like an animal regardless of how you want to go out. Never give your healthcare decision making over to just one person or even to two people who are closely connected, at least in terms of monetary benefit. Make sure that you provide, via attorney, specific instructions, right down to the type of pain relieving medications you want used, to every person involved in your healthcare POA as well as to close family members. Understand the healthcare system. HIPAA forms are a good thing. They protect your privacy. They can also be used against you because they work hand in hand with your healthcare power of attorney. HIPAA forms must be renewed every year so if there is only one party holding your healthcare power of attorney but you want several different people to have access to your medical situation, that will only hold until renewal time. The person holding your healthcare POA controls who is listed on the renewed HIPAA so it can not be used as a means for all your close family members to monitor the healthcare decisions of those who hold your healthcare POA. Become familiar with the Elder Care laws and provisions within your state. Provide that information to all close family members. Hospice care serves a necessary purpose but don't think for a moment that they won't turn their heads and look the other way when they see family members bending the law to suit their purposes because they will.
I know this doesn't exactly address your OP, Knight, but I really felt it important. I hope it's okay.
