It's graduation time! Here are some things you should do and documents you should have before your 18-year-old heads off to college.

It's getting to be graduation time and there are some things you should do before your kid leaves for college. Before your 18-year-old heads out the door, make sure you have the legal documents in place to protect them. Accidents and illnesses happen to everyone, including young adults, and you want to be able to speak to health care providers, keep informed, and help make decisions for your teen once they leave home.

Here’s what you need to know when your teen turns 18. There are three forms that facilitate the involvement of a parent in an emergency or other situation…

WHAT YOU MAY NEED IN A MEDICAL EMERGENCY.

1. Healthcare Power of Attorney. This authorizes someone (usually the parent(s)) to make medical decisions on your kid’s behalf and it gives the parent(s) access to the child's medical records and the ability to communicate with their health care providers. By signing a healthcare power of attorney, your teen is appointing you to act on their behalf in making medical decisions in case he or she cannot make those decisions for themselves.

2. HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) Authorization (also called a HIPAA release). This is a more narrow document in that it permits healthcare providers to disclose your teen’s healthcare information to you or anyone they specify.

This document alone will often suffice for you to get information from the health care institution treating your child. In a HIPAA authorization, a young adult can stipulate that they don’t want to disclose information about sex, drugs, mental health, or other details that they prefer to keep private.

3. Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA). This enables a designated agent (again, usually a parent) to make financial decisions on the student’s behalf. The DPOA can provide that power vests in you immediately after signing the document or that it vests only if your child becomes incapacitated.

The DPOA enables the designated agent to, among other things, sign tax returns, access bank accounts, pay bills, make changes to your child’s financial aid package, or figure out tuition problems.

As parents, of course you always hope that you won’t need these documents, but it’s always a good idea to be prepared in case you do.

WHEN SHOULD YOU GET THESE DOCUMENTS? Your child should prepare these documents ahead of time because it may take time to get everything in order including notarization (although not every state requires notarization). Once kids take off for school it may be hard to get their attention, so be mindful of that.

WHAT ELSE CHANGES WHEN YOUR KID TURNS 18? When your child reaches 18, even though you may still think of them as children, under the law they have now achieved adult status. That status allows them to vote, serve in the military, serve on a jury, sign a contract, and get married without your consent. Although they still can’t do certain things, like drink alcohol or rent cars, their legal status is decidedly different than it was at 17.

* All males with U.S. citizenship (with very few exceptions) must register for the selective service upon reaching the age of 18.

* Although not required, this is a great time for your kids to register to vote.

* When your children turn 18, you no longer automatically have the authority to make healthcare decisions for them. And this is true even if they are still covered by your health insurance and you are paying the bills. This means that if your child has an accident or illness and is temporarily disabled, without a Power of Attorney, you may need court approval to act on their behalf or even to be informed of their medical status.

* Despite the fact that you are paying for their education, FERPA says you no longer have access to your child’s grades once they turn 18. That’s right, you can call the registrar and ask to see your 18-year-old’s transcript and they will not share it with you even though you’re the one signing the tuition checks.

* You can no longer manage money for your children once they turn 18.

If you've got a kid heading off to school in the fall, give us a call at 253.858.5434 and we can help your get these documents in place before they go. We represent clients throughout Washington and Idaho and are available to meet in person, by phone, or via video conference.