75-2a-109 - Effect of current health care preferences -- When a surrogate may act. - Utah Statutes

75-2a-109. Effect of current health care preferences -- When a surrogate may act.
(1) An adult with health care decision making capacity retains the right to make healthcare decisions as long as the adult has health care decision making capacity as defined in Section75-2a-103. For purposes of this chapter, the inability to communicate through speech does notmean that the adult lacks health care decision making capacity.
(2) An adult's current health care decisions, however expressed or indicated, alwayssupersede an adult's prior decisions or health care directives.
(3) Unless otherwise directed in an advance health care directive, an advance health caredirective or the authority of a surrogate to make health care decisions on behalf of an adult:
(a) is effective only after a physician, physician assistant, or APRN makes adetermination of incapacity as provided in Section 75-2a-104;
(b) remains in effect during any period of time in which the declarant lacks capacity tomake health care decisions; and
(c) ceases to be effective when:
(i) a declarant disqualifies a surrogate or revokes the advance health care directive;
(ii) a health care provider finds that the declarant has health care decision makingcapacity;
(iii) a court issues an order invalidating a health care directive; or
(iv) the declarant has challenged the finding of incapacity under the provisions ofSubsection 75-2a-104(3).

Amended by Chapter 99, 2009 General Session