Kansas End of Life Guide

Advance Directives 

Advance Directives are legal documents that allow you to make known your end-of-life care ahead of time. The state of Kansas recognizes your right to decide the terms of your own medical treatment and to assign a person to make those decisions when you are not able to do so. 

Here are some important questions to consider before beginning this process:

• Is this document(s) state specific? Yes

• Does this document(s) need to be notarized? Yes*

• Does this document(s) require witnesses? If so, how many? Yes / 2

• Can you legally use Aging With Dignity's 5 Wishes Doc? Yes

• * Document can have either notarization OR witnesses 

There is a single Advance Directive form for Kansas that you can download by clicking the button below:

KANSAS ADVANCE DIRECTIVE FORM

(Source: Wichita Medical Research & Education Foundation)

Death with Dignity

Death with Dignity laws allow the dying more control of their death and end-of-life decisions. These laws allow terminally-ill, able-minded state residents to request and receive prescription medication to hasten their death.

In Kansas, Death With Dignity legislation has been submitted under House Bill 2068.

Designated Funeral Agent

Kansas law supports the appointment of a designated funeral agent to follow through on your written personal preferences (see below) or make funeral arrangements on your behalf if no written preferences are indicated.

Kansas Statues 65-1734 obligate, "The agent for health care decisions established by a durable power of attorney for health care decisions pursuant to K.S.A. 58-625 et seq., and amendments thereto, if such power of attorney conveys to the agent the authority to make decisions concerning disposition of the decedent's remains..."

The appointment of a designated funeral agent will override the next-of-kin's usual authority and let the citizen designate whom he/she wants to control the disposition of his body.

Financial Assistance

In the state of Kansas, there are no funds available to help offset the cost of an indigent death. Counties are under no obligation to help the poor pay for burial expenses. But under state law, counties are responsible for paying for the burial or cremation of unclaimed bodies.

See our Financial Assistance Chart for more details.

Home Funeral

Home funerals, or family led funerals, are 100% legal in Kansas. Your family or appointed agent may care for the deceased and handle all your funeral arrangements and necessary paperwork (permits and certificates) without a funeral director.

Personal Preference Law

Personal preference laws for body disposition obligate your survivors to follow your written [or verbal] personal preferences. This often goes hand-in-hand with designating a funeral agent to follow through with your funeral or body disposition preferences.

In Kansas, there is not a law obligating your survivors to follow your personal preferences. However, we always recommend outlining your funeral preference in writing and sharing them with your designated funeral agent, next-of-kin, or spouse, giving you the best chance of having them seen through or upheld in the courts.