New Guide on POLST Laws

Charlie Sabatino, my good friend, and the fabulous executive director of the ABA Commission on Law & Aging (COLA), forwarded an announcement regarding the release of the POLST Legislative Guide.  According to the introduction to the guide:  

The Guide is organized around twelve legal/regulatory questions and issues that have been most recurrent across the states implementing POLST Programs. It suggests a preferred outcome to each issue, based upon the collective learned experience of states with POLST Programs endorsed by the NPPTF. The Guide provides a description and analysis of each issue — and sub-issues where indicated — and offers options to guide response strategies that may range from clinical practice consensus to legislation. The NPPTF has not attempted to provide a model POLST act because experience to date has demonstrated that the frameworks and complexities of each state’s existing state health care decisions laws are unique.

The guide addresses 12 issues, including portability, oversight, liability, compliance, completion of POLST, a surrogate’s authority, legislation, and definitions.  Additional legal resources from the POLST Paradigm are available here, including a chart comparing state legislation.  Charlie also serves as the legal consultant to the National POLST paradigm task force.