Where to Store an Advance Directive in Colorado

An advance directive that no one can find during an emergency is functionally worthless. The document's legal validity means nothing if your healthcare agent doesn't have a copy, the ER can't locate it in your medical record, and the EMTs arriving at your home see no evidence it exists.

The Distribution Problem

Colorado does not maintain a centralized state registry for advance directives. Unlike some states that offer online repositories searchable by hospital staff, Colorado relies on the individual to distribute copies to the right people and institutions. This creates real gaps — families execute documents carefully, file them at home, and never distribute them to the providers who need them during a crisis.

Who Needs a Copy

At minimum, distribute your executed advance directive documents (MDPOA, Living Will, CPR Directive if applicable) to:

Your healthcare agent and alternates. They need copies immediately — not after you're admitted. If your agent gets a panicked call from a hospital and doesn't have the document, they'll have to prove their authority before anyone listens to them. Physical copies plus digital photos stored on their phone covers both planned and emergency scenarios.

Your primary care physician's office. Most practices scan advance directives into your patient chart. At your next appointment, hand a copy to the front desk and confirm it's been entered.

Hospital medical records departments. Colorado's major health systems (UCHealth, Banner Health, Kaiser Permanente, Denver Health) allow you to upload advance directives to your patient portal. UCHealth uses MyChart; Kaiser has its own system. Uploading ensures the documents are available to any provider within that network — including the ER — without anyone needing to call your family first.

Specialists you see regularly. If you have ongoing relationships with oncologists, cardiologists, or other specialists, they should have copies in their records too.

Your attorney. If an estate planning attorney holds your file, include current directives so they aren't distributing outdated versions.

Home Storage for Emergency Responders

If you have a CPR Directive or MOST form, placement in the home is critical. Colorado EMTs are trained to look for these documents in three specific locations:

• On the refrigerator (the most common and widely recognized placement)
• By the bedside of a bed-bound individual
• On the inside of the front door

The document does not need to be an original — photocopies, scans, and faxes are legally acceptable under Colorado law. What matters is immediate visibility. An EMT who arrives to a cardiac arrest has seconds, not minutes, to check for a valid directive before beginning resuscitation.

Some Coloradans also wear state-standardized DNR bracelets or pendants that alert first responders to the existence of a signed CPR Directive or MOST form. These are supplementary — the actual signed document still needs to be accessible.

The Wallet Card

A wallet card doesn't replace your actual advance directive — it alerts medical staff that one exists and tells them who to contact. An effective wallet card includes:

• Your full name and date of birth
• Which directives you have active (MDPOA, Living Will, CPR Directive, MOST)
• Your healthcare agent's name and phone number
• Your alternate agent's name and phone number
• Your primary care physician and clinic

If you're found unconscious away from home, the wallet card ensures the ER knows to check for directives rather than defaulting to full aggressive treatment while trying to locate family.

Digital Copies and Cloud Storage

Keep digital copies (photos or PDFs) in:

• Your phone's health app or locked notes
• A shared cloud folder your agent can access
• Your patient portal uploads

But understand the limitation: digital copies supplement physical ones. A hospitalized patient whose phone is locked and whose family is unreachable still needs directives in the hospital's own system to be honored.

Updating After Changes

Every time you revoke or update a directive, the distribution cycle repeats. Outdated copies lingering in a hospital system can create dangerous conflicts with your current wishes. When you update, request that each provider destroy or remove the prior version from their records.

The Colorado Advance Directive & Living Will Kit includes a printable wallet card template, a distribution tracking checklist, and step-by-step instructions for uploading to Colorado's major hospital portals.

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