Living Wills and Advance Directives in Colorado

Colorado calls a living will a "declaration as to medical treatment" under the Colorado Medical Treatment Decision Act. Any adult with decisional capacity may sign one directing that life-sustaining procedures be withheld or withdrawn if they later have a terminal condition or are in a persistent vegetative state and cannot decide for themselves; it can also state preferences on artificial nutrition and hydration. It must be signed in front of two witnesses or acknowledged before a notary. The person signing for a declarant who cannot sign, and the witnesses or notary, cannot be a physician, an employee of the attending physician or facility, or a person with a claim against, or expecting to inherit from, the estate. The declarant is responsible for giving it to the attending physician or nurse for the medical record.

Colorado calls it a "medical durable power of attorney." It names an agent to consent to or refuse medical treatment, including artificial nourishment and hydration, when the principal lacks decisional capacity, and may include directions and limits. The statute does not set a witness or notary requirement. The agent must follow the principal's stated directions and known wishes (or best interests if none are known), may access medical records, and cannot override the principal's objection. Divorce or legal separation automatically revokes the appointment of a spouse as agent unless the document says otherwise. An organ and tissue donation statement may be attached.