N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law § 81.22: Powers of guardian; personal needs

§ 81.22 Powers of guardian; personal needs.

(a) Consistent with the functional limitations of the incapacitated

person, that person's understanding and appreciation of the harm that he

or she is likely to suffer as the result of the inability to provide for

personal needs, and that person's personal wishes, preferences, and

desires with regard to managing the activities of daily living, and the

least restrictive form of intervention, the court may grant to the

guardian powers necessary and sufficient to provide for the personal

needs of the incapacitated person. Those powers which may be granted

include, but are not limited to, the power to:

1. determine who shall provide personal care or assistance;

2. make decisions regarding social environment and other social

aspects of the life of the incapacitated person;

3. determine whether the incapacitated person should travel;

4. determine whether the incapacitated person should possess a license

to drive;

5. authorize access to or release of confidential records;

6. make decisions regarding education;

7. apply for government and private benefits;

8. (i) for decisions in hospitals as defined by subdivision eighteen

of section twenty-nine hundred ninety-four-a of the public health law,

act as the patient's surrogate pursuant to and subject to article

twenty-nine-CC of the public health law, and (ii) in all other

circumstances, to consent to or refuse generally accepted routine or

major medical or dental treatment, subject to the decision-making

standard in subdivision four of section twenty-nine hundred

ninety-four-d of the public health law;

9. choose the place of abode; the choice of abode must be consistent

with the findings under section 81.15 of this article, the existence of

and availability of family, friends and social services in the

community, the care, comfort and maintenance, and where appropriate,

rehabilitation of the incapacitated person, the needs of those with whom

the incapacitated person resides; placement of the incapacitated person

in a nursing home or residential care facility as those terms are

defined in section two thousand eight hundred one of the public health

law, or other similar facility shall not be authorized without the

consent of the incapacitated person so long as it is reasonable under

the circumstances to maintain the incapacitated person in the community,

preferably in the home of the incapacitated person.

(b) No guardian may:

1. consent to the voluntary formal or informal admission of the

incapacitated person to a mental hygiene facility under article nine or

fifteen of this chapter or to a chemical dependence facility under

article twenty-two of this chapter;

2. revoke any appointment or delegation made by the incapacitated

person pursuant to sections 5-1501, 5-1601 and 5-1602 of the general

obligations law, sections two thousand nine hundred sixty-five and two

thousand nine hundred eighty-one of the public health law, or any living

will.