HB 5481 Summary

• Adds "physician orders for scope of treatment form" (POLST form) as a defined term in the Estates and Protected Individuals Code, referencing the definition in the Public Health Code.

• Requires courts to provide written information about alternatives to full guardianship before a guardianship petition is filed, including limited guardianship, conservatorship, patient advocate designation, do-not-resuscitate orders, POLST forms, and durable power of attorney.

• Expands guardian ad litem duties to inform the allegedly incapacitated individual about the guardian's potential power to execute both do-not-resuscitate orders and POLST forms, and to determine if the individual objects to either document being executed on their behalf.

• Authorizes guardians to execute, reaffirm, and revoke POLST forms on behalf of wards, subject to the same requirements as do-not-resuscitate orders: visiting the ward within 14 days before execution, consulting with the ward if meaningful communication is possible, and consulting with the attending physician about medical indications.

• Requires guardians to annually visit the ward and consult with the attending physician to determine whether to reaffirm a POLST form, and to report in annual guardian reports whether a POLST form was executed, reaffirmed, or revoked during the past year.