Arizona Laws 36-3203. Surrogate; authority; responsibilities; immunity
A. A person authorized as a surrogate to make health care decisions under this chapter is not responsible for paying the patient’s health care costs unless the person is otherwise required to do so.
Terms Used In Arizona Laws 36-3203
- Agent: means an adult who has the authority to make health care treatment decisions for another person, referred to as the principal, pursuant to a health care power of attorney. See Arizona Laws 36-3201
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
- Health care directive: means a document drafted in substantial compliance with this chapter, including a mental health care power of attorney, to deal with a person's future health care decisions. See Arizona Laws 36-3201
- Person: includes a corporation, company, partnership, firm, association or society, as well as a natural person. See Arizona Laws 1-215
- Surrogate: means a person authorized to make health care decisions for a patient by a power of attorney, a court order or the provisions of section 36-3231. See Arizona Laws 36-3201
B. This chapter does not authorize a surrogate to consent to any act or omission to which the patient could not lawfully consent.
C. The surrogate shall make health care decisions for the patient in accordance with the patient’s wishes as expressed in the health care directive. If the health care directive does not provide sufficient information to know what the patient would want in a particular circumstance, the surrogate shall base these decisions on the surrogate’s knowledge of the patient’s values if those are known or can be determined to the surrogate’s satisfaction. If neither the health care directive nor the surrogate’s knowledge of the patient’s values provides a sufficient basis for making a health care decision, the surrogate shall decide based on the surrogate’s good faith belief as to what is in the patient’s best interest.
D. A surrogate who makes good faith health care decisions for a patient is not subject to civil or criminal liability for those decisions. Acts and refusals to act made in reliance on the provisions of a health care directive are presumed to be made in good faith. A court shall base a finding of an absence of good faith on information known to the surrogate and shall enter its finding only after it has made a determination of bad faith in written findings of fact based on clear and convincing evidence of improper motive. For the purposes of this subsection, "good faith" includes all health care decisions, acts and refusals to act based on a surrogate’s reasonable belief of a patient’s desires or a patient’s best interest if these decisions, acts or refusals to act are not contrary to the patient’s express written directions in a valid health care directive.
E. A surrogate who is not the patient’s agent or guardian shall not consent to or approve the permanent withdrawal of the artificial administration of food or fluid.