A living will in Texas, formally called a directive to physicians, lets you state in advance which life-sustaining treatments you want or refuse if you develop a terminal or irreversible condition and cannot communicate. To make one, you sign the statutory form and have it witnessed by two qualified people, or sign before a notary instead of witnesses.
Nobody plans to be unable to speak for themselves, but illness and injury do not wait for convenient timing. Texas gives you three separate tools to make sure your medical wishes are followed even if you cannot voice them: the living will, the medical power of attorney, and the out-of-hospital do-not-resuscitate order. This guide covers what each one does and how to create a living will that Texas hospitals and physicians will honor.
When You Should Have an Advance Directive
Anyone building a Texas estate plan benefits from pairing a will with a healthcare directive. It becomes urgent, not just prudent, if you are elderly, hospitalized, diagnosed with a terminal or progressive illness, or entering a nursing home. Waiting until a crisis hits means your family is left guessing, or fighting, over decisions you could have made clearly in advance.
The Three Texas Advance Directives
Texas law, under the Texas Advance Directives Act, recognizes three distinct documents:
- Directive to Physicians (Living Will): States your wishes about life-sustaining treatment if you have a terminal or irreversible condition and cannot communicate.
- Medical Power of Attorney: Appoints someone to make healthcare decisions on your behalf, in any situation where you cannot decide for yourself, not only terminal illness.
- Out-of-Hospital DNR: Tells emergency responders not to attempt resuscitation outside a hospital setting.
A living will and a medical power of attorney are often confused. The living will only applies to a terminal or irreversible condition; a medical power of attorney applies whenever you cannot make healthcare decisions, for any reason.
What a Texas Living Will Covers
Your directive can address treatments including:
- Mechanical ventilation
- Heart-lung (cardiopulmonary) support machines
- Artificial nutrition via feeding tube
- Artificial hydration
- Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
- Kidney dialysis
You can also address pain management and palliative care, which focuses on comfort rather than cure.
Requirements to Make a Living Will in Texas
Texas living wills are governed by the Texas Health and Safety Code Section 166.033, which sets out the statutory directive form. To execute it, you sign the document, and either two qualifying witnesses also sign, or you sign before a notary public instead of using witnesses.
Under Texas Health and Safety Code Section 166.003, at least one witness cannot be any of the following:
- A person you designated to make health care decisions for you
- A person related to you by blood or marriage
- A person entitled to any part of your estate under a will or by law
- Your attending physician
- An employee of your attending physician
- An employee of the health care facility providing you direct care, or an officer, director, partner, or business office employee of that facility or its parent organization
- A person who has a claim against your estate at the time the directive is signed
Talk through your preferences with your physician, family, and anyone you are naming to make decisions, before you sign. Clarity now prevents conflict later.
Texas Medical Power of Attorney
A medical power of attorney gives your named agent authority to make healthcare decisions for you generally, not just in a terminal-illness scenario. It typically takes effect once your attending physician certifies, in writing, that you cannot make your own decisions. Even then, Texas law lets you personally object to a decision, and your agent cannot override that objection.
Texas Out-of-Hospital DNR
An out-of-hospital DNR instructs emergency medical personnel not to start or continue specific resuscitation procedures if you are found without a pulse or not breathing outside a hospital setting, such as at home. It only applies in the out-of-hospital emergency context, not to in-hospital care.
Build Your Living Will Online with FastWill
FastWill's platform walks you through each medical decision point and produces a Texas-compliant directive, built with AI and reviewed against Texas law. Most people complete a living will alongside their Texas will package in one sitting, so both documents are consistent and stored together. If you also need a durable financial power of attorney, see our guide on how to make a power of attorney in Texas.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a living will the same as a medical power of attorney in Texas?
No. A living will only applies if you have a terminal or irreversible condition and cannot communicate. A medical power of attorney applies whenever you cannot make healthcare decisions, for any reason, and appoints a person to decide for you.
Does a Texas living will need to be notarized?
You can either sign it before two qualifying witnesses or sign it before a notary public. You do not need both.
Can my spouse witness my living will?
No. Under Section 166.003, at least one witness cannot be related to you by blood or marriage, entitled to inherit from you, or otherwise have a financial or medical stake in the outcome.
Can I change my mind after signing a living will?
Yes. You can revoke a directive to physicians at any time, regardless of your mental state, by destroying it, signing a written revocation, or telling your attending physician, who must document it in your medical record.
What happens if I do not have a living will and become incapacitated?
Your family and physicians will have to make treatment decisions without your documented input, which can lead to disagreement, delay, and outcomes you may not have wanted.
