No power of attorney
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No power of attorney
My husband died in February. He never signed a power of attorney. He had been legally blind for many years and I always had to fill out forms and sign things for him. There has been no problems except for the rehab facility he was in. They will not release his medical records to me unless I go through the expense of going through probate court to be made executor of the estate to get three weeks of records. Yet there was no problem with me signing everything to admit him into the facility. I know they are afraid of a lawsuit but is there another way around this?
Asked on May 17, 2018 under Estate Planning, Arkansas
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 5 years ago | Contributor
No, there is no way around it: they are doing what the law requires. The law is very clear that *only* the executor, court-appointed administrator, or personal representative (depending on the circumstances, any of these terms might be the appropriate one) of a deceased's estate has the legal authority to access their health care records, accounts, personal information, etc. You cannot expect the rehab facility to violate the law for you; you need to get the necessary authority from the probate court.
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