What Legal Forms Does Your Student Need?
Extra long sheets, shower caddy, medical proxy? Yes, there are things your student needs for college that aren't fun to shop for. Legal documents in particular. What forms does your student need? There are three essential ones, and a few others that might make sense depending on circumstances. Note that even if your student is not yet 18, in many states parents lose automatic access to their information at younger ages.
Healthcare Proxy
This form allows a person to designate another to make medical decisions on their behalf if they are unable to do so. With this form, you could contact speak with the healthcare professionals treating your student in the event of a car accident or other emergency to advocate on their behalf. Healthcare proxies go by a variety of names: medical power of attorney, healthcare power of attorney, durable power of attorney for healthcare, etc. Your student's physician can tell you the correct form to use.
HIPAA Release
A HIPAA release allows a medical provider to share your student's medical information with you. HIPAA releases are facility-specific, so you should make sure your student signs one for their doctor's office at home and another for on-campus health services or facilities. Your doctor's office will have one, and their college should be able to provide one for on-campus facilities. You need a HIPAA release to order a prescription refill, request replacement glasses, and many other things your student might want (expect) you to do. A healthcare proxy can sometimes be a substitute for a HIPAA release; ask your student's physician if that's the case.
FERPA Release
Even if you're paying your student's tuition, you cannot access their academic records unless they authorize you to do so via a FERPA release. Colleges generally provide this form to students during the enrollment process; you'll want to verify that it's complete if you want to see report cards or other academic information. Not only that, but on-campus health clinics generally fall under FERPA, not HIPAA.
Some other forms that might be helpful, depending on circumstances:
Durable Power of Attorney: If your student is not yet 18 or if they're studying abroad, a Durable Power of Attorney could make sense. A Durable Power of Attorney allows you to make financial decisions on their behalf, including managing their bank account, paying bills, signing their tax return, and more. DPOAs convey significant power to the person to whom this authority is granted so in most situations it's not necessary.
Advance Directive: An advance directive spells out what treatment a person would like if they are incapacitated and unable to make their own decisions, including for life-sustaining support, organ donation and resuscitation. (This form isn't specific to students; you should have one yourself.) If nothing else, having your student complete one will help you to understand their thoughts about
Healthcare forms are state-specific and different states have different requirements such as notarization. If your student is going to school out-of-state, make sure that they create forms for both states. The college should have downloadable forms on its website; just ask if you can't find them. Likewise, your student's physician can tell you where to get your state's forms. Once the forms are done, make sure that you and your student have hard copies and digital copies on computers and phones, and that the student's healthcare providers have them. Your doctor's online portal should also be able to store these forms, and there are apps and services like MyDirectives and Myhealthcarewishes that allow you to store and share these documents.
