Updated September 3, 2026. Quick answer: Alaska calls this instrument Advance Health Care Directive (combining an individual-instruction/living-will component and a durable power of attorney for health care component, plus optional anatomical-gift and guardian-nomination provisions). Witnesses needed to execute it: 2 (or notarization in lieu of witnesses). What the state requires: Either method satisfies execution: (1) signed by at least two individuals personally known to the principal who witnessed the signing or acknowledgment, or (2) acknowledged before a notary public in Alaska.. Getting the execution formalities wrong is the most common way a directive fails when it is needed.
The execution box
| What the state calls it | Advance Health Care Directive (combining an individual-instruction/living-will component and a durable power of attorney for health care component, plus optional anatomical-gift and guardian-nomination provisions) |
|---|---|
| Witnesses required | 2 (or notarization in lieu of witnesses) |
| Witnesses or notary? | Either method satisfies execution: (1) signed by at least two individuals personally known to the principal who witnessed the signing or acknowledgment, or (2) acknowledged before a notary public in Alaska. |
| Who may NOT witness | A health care provider employed at the facility where the principal is receiving care; an employee of that provider/facility; or the named agent. At least one of the two witnesses must also NOT be related to the principal by blood, marriage, or adoption, or entitled to inherit from the principal’s estate. |
| If you are in a care facility | No separate ombudsman/patient-advocate witness requirement. Instead, health care providers/employees at the principal’s facility are disqualified as witnesses, and the agent may not be an owner, operator, or employee of that facility unless related by blood, marriage, or adoption. |
| Authority | AS 13.52.010, Alaska Health Care Decisions Act |
What the statute says
“The power must be in writing, contain the date of its execution, be signed by the principal, and be witnessed by one of the following methods: (1) signed by at least two individuals who are personally known by the principal, each of whom witnessed either the signing of the instrument by the principal or the principal’s acknowledgment of the signature of the instrument; or (2) acknowledged before a notary public at a place in this state.” (AS 13.52.010(b))
(AS 13.52.010, Alaska Health Care Decisions Act)
The form
Yes: the Alaska Court System’s Self-Help Center publishes a free official Advance Health Care Directive form implementing the AS 13.52 statutory form.
Why the witness rules matter more than the wording
People spend their effort on what the directive says and almost none on how it is signed. A directive that expresses your wishes perfectly but was witnessed by someone the statute disqualifies may not be honoured. The disqualification lists exist because the people most likely to be in the room, family, the treating doctor, facility staff, are the people with an interest in the outcome.
Two practical consequences. Ask who is signing before the appointment, not during it. And if you are already in a hospital or care facility, check the facility rule row above: several states add a requirement that applies only to patients and residents, and it is the one nobody mentions.
This is the medical instrument, not the financial one
A financial power of attorney is a different document with different execution rules. Having one does not give anyone authority over your medical care, and having this one gives nobody authority over your money. Most people need both, and they are executed separately.
What could not be verified
akleg.gov returned HTTP 403 and touchngo.com refused connection; statute text instead read from a verbatim-reproduction PDF hosted by the National Resource Center for Psychiatric Advance Directives (nrc-pad.org), cross-checked against Justia snippets and independently corroborated by the actual Alaska Court System official form, fetched and read directly, which self-identifies as implementing AS 13.52 with matching rules.
Related: all states compared · living will versus healthcare proxy · what it costs.
Also for Alaska: Alaska Power of Attorney Requirements.
General information drawn from state statutes and official state materials, not legal or medical advice. Advance-directive law is STATE law and the execution requirements differ in ways that decide whether a document works: some states require witnesses AND a notary, some accept either, and the list of people who may not witness varies. A directive executed the wrong way may not be honoured when it matters. Many states publish a free official form – you should not have to buy one.