Governor Signs Family Health Care Decisions Act

On March 16, Governor Paterson signed into law the Family Health Care Decisions Act, ending a 17-year battle for legislation which would allow a surrogate to make medical decisions for a patient who is incapacitated. Previously, family members or close friends had no legal authority to make end of life decisions for incapacitated patients unless they had been deemed a health care proxy or could provide "clear and convincing evidence" of the patients wishes. The Family Health Care Decisions Act will alleviate this burden by by establishing procedures for selecting and empowering a surrogate to make health care decisions for a patient. The City Bar has long supported this legislation, calling it a "patient centered bill" which "put(s) decision-making power where it belongs — in the hands of the family, not the court".