Advance Directives
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Informed Health Care Consent Law
If you do not have an Advance Directive, North Dakota law has defined who would make health care decisions for you, if you were unable to make them for yourself. This is called the informed consent law. This law can be found in Section 23-12-13 of the North Dakota Century Code.
The 1991 North Dakota Legislature passed the "Informed Health care Consent Law" for minors and incapacitated persons.
This law authorizes certain persons to provide consent for minors or persons who are incapacitated and, therefore, unable to make or communicate their own medical decisions. This law prohibits consent for sterilization, abortion, psychosurgery, or admission to a mental health facility or secured unit of a long-term care facility for more than 45 days without a court order.
The law establishes a priority list of persons who are authorized to provide informed consent to health care n behalf of a minor or an incapacitated person.
If you are an adult, the law requires that a doctor determine that you are an incapacitated person before anyone is authorized to consent on your behalf.
This law requires that the person who is authorized to provide informed consent on your behalf must first determine that you would have consented to the proposed health care if you were able. If such a determination cannot be made, the authorized person may consent only after determining that the proposed health care is in your best interest.