New Jersey Statutes 26:2H-103. Findings, declarations relative to advance directives for mental health care
Terms Used In New Jersey Statutes 26:2H-103
- person: includes corporations, companies, associations, societies, firms, partnerships and joint stock companies as well as individuals, unless restricted by the context to an individual as distinguished from a corporate entity or specifically restricted to one or some of the above enumerated synonyms and, when used to designate the owner of property which may be the subject of an offense, includes this State, the United States, any other State of the United States as defined infra and any foreign country or government lawfully owning or possessing property within this State. See New Jersey Statutes 1:1-2
- Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. Source: OCC
- State: extends to and includes any State, territory or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia and the Canal Zone. See New Jersey Statutes 1:1-2
- Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
a. This State recognizes, in its law and public policy, a patient’s right to make voluntary, informed choices to accept, reject, or choose among alternative courses of medical and surgical treatment, and specifically for an adult who has mental capacity to plan ahead for health care decisions through the execution of an advance directive for health care, otherwise known as a living will or durable power of attorney for health care, and to have the wishes expressed therein respected, subject to certain limitations;
b. Advance directives for health care provide a vehicle for adults who have mental capacity to operationalize their fundamental legal right to accept or refuse medical treatment in the event that they are rendered unable to make decisions and communicate with a health care provider about their treatment options because of serious illness, injury, or permanent loss of mental capacity;
c. The issues affecting persons with mental illness and their psychiatric needs warrant enactment of a separate statute governing advance directives for these individuals, who: find their civil rights and due process protections frequently compromised; often lack the resources, societal supports, and self-esteem needed to make advance directives for health care work for them; and are disadvantaged by the fact that many physicians and attorneys are unaware of the specific issues that typically enter into the decisions that a person with mental illness may make for himself when in crisis;
d. The provision by statute of advanced directives for mental health care will assure respect for the rights of patients with mental illness with respect to the provision of mental health services and their decision-making in regard thereto; and
e. In order to permit a person with mental illness to execute an advance directive that specifies preferences for mental health services in the event that the declarant is subsequently determined to lack decision-making capacity, the Legislature hereby enacts the “New Jersey Advance Directives for Mental Health Care Act.”
L.2005, c.233, s.2; amended 2013, c.103, s.68.