Free Alabama Advance Directive Template

An Alabama advance directive for health care is one document that can hold a living will, the appointment of a health care proxy, or both together. The Alabama Department of Public Health publishes the form, and Section 22-8A-4 of the Code of Alabama sets the rules behind it.

Because the state combines both halves in a single form, you do not need to sign a separate living will alongside it.

Alabama sets a handful of firm conditions, and the age rule catches people out.

You Must Be at Least 19

The form opens with a statement that you are of sound mind and at least 19 years old. Alabama uses 19 as its age of majority, so an 18-year-old cannot sign one here.

Two Witnesses Must Sign

Two people watch you sign and then add their own signatures. Each one signs a statement confirming they believe you are of sound mind.

Who Cannot Serve as a Witness

Alabama rules out anyone with a stake in the outcome. A witness cannot be:

• The health care proxy you name in the form
• A relative by blood, adoption, or marriage
• Anyone entitled to a share of your estate
• Anyone directly responsible for paying your medical care
• The person who signed the form for you at your direction

Each witness must also be at least 19.

Your Proxy Signs Too

Section 6 of the form asks the person you name to sign a statement accepting the role. Your second-choice proxy signs a matching statement. So line both of them up before your signing appointment.

Nobody Files It

No court or agency receives an Alabama advance directive. Instead, your health care provider adds it to your medical records once you hand a copy over.

No. Alabama asks for witnesses instead of a notary.

Section 22-8A-4 lists what makes the document valid: your signature, the date, and two qualified witnesses. Notarization does not appear anywhere in that list, and the Department of Public Health form ends with a witness block rather than a notary block.

Tip: Alabama also pauses your instructions during pregnancy. The form states that if you are pregnant, or become pregnant, the choices you made will not be followed until after the birth. Use the Other Directions space if you want to say more about that.

1. Confirm you are at least 19 and thinking clearly.
2. Work through the living will section, initialing yes or no for life-sustaining treatment and for food and water by tube or IV.
3. Answer the same two questions again for permanent unconsciousness, since Alabama treats it as a separate situation.
4. Name a first-choice and second-choice health care proxy, or initial the line saying you do not want one.
5. Tell your proxy how much latitude they have, using the three options the form gives.
6. Sign and date in front of two qualified witnesses, then have both proxies sign their acceptance statements.
7. Give copies to your doctor, your proxy, and the people closest to you.

Start your Alabama advance directive now and have it ready to sign today.

Alabama prints its form in the statute, so the sections are fixed. Six of them run in order.

Section 1: Living Will

Two situations, handled separately. First, terminal illness or injury, meaning two doctors agree your condition cannot be cured and you will likely die from it soon. Second, permanent unconsciousness. Under each, you initial yes or no for life-sustaining treatment and for artificially provided food and hydration. A free-text box follows for anything else you want done or not done.

Section 2: If I Need Someone to Speak for Me

Here you name a health care proxy and a back-up, with addresses and phone numbers for both. You also say whether your proxy may decide about food and water through a tube or an IV.

Then you pick how closely your proxy must stick to the page. They can follow only what you wrote, fill gaps you did not cover, or make the final call even if it differs from your written choices.

Sections 3 Through 6: Signatures

Section 3 confirms the form reflects your wishes. Your name, date of birth, signature, and the date go in Section 4. The two witness signatures follow in Section 5. Finally, Section 6 collects the signatures of your first and second proxy accepting the job.

The form also notes that if your doctor or hospital will not follow your directions, they must see that you reach one who will.