Ohio: your 18-year-old’s paperwork

What this covers: how a Ohio student signs the four Covered18 documents (health care directive, financial power of attorney, HIPAA release, FERPA consent) and what to do afterward. It does not say which choices are right for your family.

0. Before you start

• Age: Ohio: an adult is 18 or older (R.C. §1337.11(A); §3109.01). Sign on or after the 18th birthday.
• Talk with the person you plan to name (and a backup) before anything is printed. They need to agree and know where the papers will be.
• Schools, hospitals and banks sometimes ask for their own forms. Ask the school's registrar and student health center what they accept.
• If any item below says UNVERIFIED, confirm it with the notary, the state source, or a lawyer before relying on it.

1. Health care directive

Health care power of attorney: required notice and fill-in worksheet (Ohio)
No form text reproduced. Ohio has NO statutory health care power of attorney form. The statute requires every printed form to carry a specific notice (R.C. §1337.17), reproduced verbatim below. Covered18 does not write the power-of-attorney wording. Use an Ohio form that includes this notice.

• Principal signs at the end of the document and states the date (R.C. §1337.12(A)(1)).
• Choose ONE: (a) at least two adult witnesses who see the principal sign or acknowledge the signature, then sign; or (b) a notary acknowledgment with the notary's attestation that the principal appears of sound mind and free of duress (§1337.12(B)-(C)).
• Witnesses cannot be related to the principal by blood, marriage or adoption, cannot be the agent or alternate, the attending physician, or a nursing home administrator. This usually rules out relatives, so many families choose the notary.

2. Financial power of attorney

Statutory Form Power of Attorney (Ohio)
Statutory form text reproduced verbatim from the official source (see Sources). Optional statutory form, Ohio R.C. §1337.60 (Uniform Power of Attorney Act).

• Principal signs (R.C. §1337.25). Acknowledgment before a notary makes the signature presumed genuine and is part of the statutory form.
• Ohio's statutory form does not require witnesses.
• Durable by default (§1337.24).

Watch for: - The statute text begins with a placeholder "Insert Name Of Jurisdiction". Fill in "Ohio" there. - A notary acknowledgment makes the signature presumed genuine (R.C. §1337.25) and is part of the form's execution block. Real-estate transactions may need an acknowledged and recorded POA (UNVERIFIED). - Gifts and other special powers require initials; leave blank if unsure.

3. HIPAA authorization and FERPA consent

• The HIPAA release and FERPA consent are separate papers built from the federal required elements (45 CFR 164.508; 34 CFR 99.30). The student signs and dates each. Neither gives anyone the power to make decisions; they only allow information to be shared.
• Notarization is not required by the federal rules. Some schools and providers want their own form; ask first.
• Ohio mental-health records (R.C. 5122.31) have their own rules; they were not researched. UNVERIFIED.
• Ask the registrar and student health center which forms they accept.

4. Remote (online) options

Question	What we found
Remote online notarization	Ohio allows online notarization by a commissioned online notary who is an Ohio resident located in Ohio when notarizing; the principal may be anywhere in the U.S. (R.C. §§147.60-.66; §147.64). The authority covers "any notarial act" (§147.64(A)(1)), but whether it works for a health care POA acknowledgment is UNVERIFIED. No remote-witnessing rule was found.

If the table says UNVERIFIED, plan on signing in person. See the notary options page for online notary services and their public prices.

5. If the student is signing from another state

• Another state's health care POA: valid if it substantially complies with that state's law or R.C. §§1337.11-.17 (R.C. §1337.16(G)).
• Another state's financial POA: valid if execution complied with the law that determines its meaning and effect (R.C. §1337.26(C)); photocopies have the same effect (§1337.26(D)).

Banks and hospitals decide for themselves what they accept. Whether yours accepts an out-of-state document is UNVERIFIED.

6. Stop and ask a lawyer if

• Family members are the only available witnesses (use a notary instead).
• Anything in your situation does not match this guide (for example guardianship, a disability, or a business interest).

7. Checklist to bring to the notary

• ☐ Government photo ID that is current (the notary will check it against the name on the papers).
• ☐ The documents, printed, unsigned. Do not sign ahead of time.
• ☐ Every person who must be present: the student, any witnesses (see Section 1 and 2), and the notary.
• ☐ Names, addresses and phone numbers for the agent(s) and backups.
• ☐ A black-ink pen. Print the HIPAA release and FERPA consent on their own pages.
• ☐ Ask the notary what the fee is before the appointment. Notary fees are not included in Covered18's price.
• ☐ Do not bring the agent as a witness unless the state section above says it is allowed.

8. After signing

• Make copies. Give a copy to the agent, the backup agent, the student's doctor or campus health center, and the bank if the financial document is meant to be used there. Keep the original somewhere safe and tell people where.
• Keep a scan in a place the agent can reach.
• Review once a year and after any big change (new school, move, relationship change). The HIPAA release has its own expiry date; set a reminder.
• If the student wants to change or cancel a document, ask the notary or a lawyer how to do that in your state.

9. UNVERIFIED items

• A usable Ohio health care POA wording (no statutory form; the Ohio State Bar packet is not a government source).
• Whether remote online notarization satisfies the health care POA acknowledgment.
• Real-estate recording requirements for POAs.
• Ohio mental-health record rules (R.C. 5122.31) and declaration for mental health treatment (R.C. ch. 2135).