In general, Power of Attorneys (“POA”) should be part of everyone’s estate plan. The primary reason you should have a POA is to plan for your potential incapacity. There may be a time when you become incapacitated because of an accident, illness, old age, or some other reason. A durable POA will ensure that you have someone (an “Agent”) to act on your behalf if you are incapacitated and unable to act.
You should have a durable POA that covers your financial affairs and a durable POA/designation of healthcare surrogate that covers your medical needs. Technically, you could cover your financial and medical affairs in one durable POA, but it is recommended to have two separate POAs, one for financial affairs and one for medical. The reason to have two separate POAs is to be able to appoint two separate Agents to act on your behalf.
If you do not have a durable POA and you become incapacitated, then a court will need to declare you incapacitated and appoint a guardian for you. The court process of appointing a guardian can be expensive and time consuming. Having a financial and medical POA will enable you to avoid guardianship court.