Arizona Visitation Law and Health Care Powers of Attorney

Your health care power of attorney may permit your agent to restrict visitation.

In 2021, the Arizona legislature enacted A.R.S. 36-3211, which prescribes an assortment of rules and procedures regarding whether and how a health care agent may restrict visitation of an incapacitated person.  The law now requires a health care agent to "encourage and allow contact" between the principal (the incapacitated person) and other persons who have a significant relationship to the principal.  The health care agent may not restrict reasonable contact between the principal and any other person without prior court approval.

But there is an exception, and you will probably want to use it.  You can include a provision in your Arizona health care power of attorney that specifically permits your agent to limit, restrict, or prohibit reasonable contact between you and any other person.  This provision gives your health care agent the right to determine who is permitted to interact with you while you are incapacitated.  Your agent will be able to restrict visitation by people who he or she believes might try to fraudulently persuade you to change your estate plan or others whose involvement in your life brings strife.  For example, an ex-spouse or estranged child. 

It is now common, and recommended, to include the following provision in an Arizona health care power of attorney:  "I authorize my Health Care Agent to limit, restrict, or prohibit contact between me and any other person not named as an eligible Health Care Agent in this instrument."  On the other hand, you might also view the issue another way.  Perhaps you are concerned that your health care agent might unreasonably restrict visitation by your children from a prior relationship.  In this case, you might choose to intentionally omit this provision in your health care power of attorney and rely upon the default law.  Either way, it's an issue worth considering.