Topic guideUpdated 2026-02-27
Tennessee Advance Directives & Living Wills
Healthcare directives, living wills, and healthcare proxies — making your medical wishes known.
Advance Directive vs. Health Care Agent
| Advance Directive | Health Care Agent | |
|---|---|---|
| What It Does | States your treatment preferences (life support, resuscitation, feeding tubes) §68-11-1803 | Names a person to make medical decisions for you §68-11-1803 |
| When It Activates | When you cannot communicate your wishes | When you cannot make medical decisions |
| Who Acts | No one — the document speaks for you | Your chosen agent |
| Flexibility | Limited — covers only situations you anticipated | High — your agent can respond to unexpected situations |
| Recommended | Yes | Yes — most important of the two |
💡Most estate planning attorneys recommend having both. The advance directive provides clear guidance for common end-of-life scenarios, while the health care agent gives your agent authority to handle situations you could not have predicted.
What a advance directive covers §68-11-1803
A advance directive addresses:
- Life-sustaining treatment (ventilators, dialysis)
- Artificial nutrition and hydration (feeding tubes)
- Resuscitation preferences (DNR orders)
- Pain management and comfort care
- Organ and tissue donation
Choosing a health care agent §68-11-1803
Your health care agent should be someone who:
- Understands your values and treatment preferences
- Can make difficult decisions under pressure
- Is willing and able to advocate for your wishes, even against family pressure
- Lives nearby or can be reached quickly in an emergency
Name a successor agent in case your first choice is unavailable.
Tennessee law
Tennessee's Health Care Decisions Act provides a statutory advance care plan form that combines treatment preferences with agent designation.
✓Make sure your doctors, your health care agent, and your family all have copies of your advance directives. A document locked in a safe deposit box cannot help you in an emergency. Many hospitals also allow you to upload directives to their patient portal.
Prepare for Your Consultation
Quick checklist (Estate Planning)
You can start the intake without all of these.
Existing will or trust
(if any)
Asset summary
(property, accounts, policies)
Family information
(beneficiaries, guardians)
General preparation tips only. Requirements vary by case and state.
No Obligation
Ready to Talk to a Lawyer?
Submit a short intake form and a participating Tennessee attorney who handles this type of matter may reach out to you. No commitment required.
No attorney-client relationship is created unless you later sign an engagement agreement. Participating attorneys may pay a marketing fee to receive inquiries.
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
General answers to common questions. Specific outcomes depend on your facts and timing.
If you have a deadline, court notice, or upcoming hearing, mention it when requesting assistance so timing can be evaluated promptly.