State guide

Advance Directive Forms in Pennsylvania

What this document does

An advance directive is where you write down the healthcare treatment you would and would not want if you could not speak for yourself. In most states it also names a healthcare agent — the person who speaks for you when you cannot.

Does Pennsylvania have an official form?

Pennsylvania does not issue a state form. Under state law, any written document that is signed and witnessed can serve as your directive — which means a form from your hospital or doctor is usually fine.

Pennsylvania does not issue a state advance directive form. Under 20 Pa.C.S. Chapter 54, any written document that is signed and witnessed can serve as your directive, so a form from your hospital, doctor, or local Area Agency on Aging is fine.

Start with the Pennsylvania Bar Association: https://www.pabar.org/clips/livingwills.pdf

National resources

• USA.gov — Official U.S. government portal.
• Medicare.gov — Official Medicare information.

After you sign it

1. Sign it the way Pennsylvania requires. Many states need witnesses or a notary. The form itself says which — follow the form, not a blog.
2. Give copies to your healthcare agent and your doctor. A form nobody can find is a form that does not work.
3. Keep the original somewhere reachable — not locked in a safe deposit box that needs a bank visit during an emergency.
4. Add it to your checklist so your trusted contact knows it exists and where it lives.

Next: build your checklist and record where this form is kept.