Medical Document Notary in Massachusetts

A Massachusetts health care proxy is valid with two adult witnesses and does not require a notary under M.G.L. c.201D. HIPAA authorizations, living wills, medical affidavits, consents for treatment and benefit claim forms need a notary only when the institution receiving them says so. MOLST forms and DNR orders are signed by clinicians, not notarized.

If you are unsure, read the signature page. A form with a notary block and seal space needs a notary. A form with only a clinician’s signature line is a medical order; call the care team, not a notary.

Sworn medical statements use a jurat; consents and authorizations use an acknowledgment or signature witnessing. Which one applies is printed on the form.

• Medical affidavits for court. Sworn statements about a person’s condition, treatment or prognosis filed in the Probate and Family Court, Housing Court or Superior Court, including affidavits that accompany guardianship and conservatorship petitions under M.G.L. c.190B. The clinician’s medical certificate for guardianship is signed by the clinician; affidavits by family members or caregivers are sworn before a notary.
• Insurance and disability claims. Sworn statements of claim, proof of loss and continuing disability declarations where the insurer’s form includes a notary block.
• Veterans benefits. Lay statements and sworn declarations supporting a VA claim when the form requires notarization.
• Consent for a minor’s treatment. Parents authorizing a grandparent, chaperone or school to consent to care; often paired with a travel consent and sometimes apostilled for travel abroad.
• Consent to release records to an attorney or agency. When the provider’s release requires notarized signature.
• Admission and responsible party agreements. Skilled nursing and assisted living facilities sometimes require the responsible party’s signature to be notarized.
• Organ donation and body disposition statements. Where the receiving institution requires a notarized statement.

A notary cannot tell you whether a document is medically or legally appropriate, cannot fill in medical information and cannot witness a clinician’s order. Sworn medical statements follow the same jurat procedure as any other affidavit: oath first, signature in the notary’s presence, certificate and seal.

You book with the facility name, room, document list and timing; we confirm with the floor; the notary arrives, checks the patient’s ID, has a short conversation about the documents, watches the signing, performs the acknowledgment or jurat each document calls for, and leaves the family with originals and a scan. At the bedside a single document takes about 15 minutes once we sit down.

1. Book. Call (978) 424-4629 or book online with the hospital or facility name, floor and room, the documents, the patient’s alert hours and whether the attorney will join by phone. Hospital and facility visits are quoted and confirmed at booking.
2. Confirm the documents. Complete and unsigned. The proxy form from the hospital social work office, the Massachusetts Medical Society or the attorney; the HIPAA release from the attorney or provider; the POA from the attorney. We do not supply forms.
3. Arrange witnesses for the proxy. Two adults who are not the agent or alternate. Ask the charge nurse whether staff may witness; if not, bring friends or relatives who are not named in the document.
4. Notify the facility. Tell the nursing station or front desk a notary is coming, so visitor rules and room access are settled before we arrive. We call ahead as well.
5. Identity verification. The patient’s current government photo ID, checked and recorded in the journal under M.G.L. c.222 s.22. A hospital wristband is not ID. If the ID is at home, a family member brings it before we start.
6. Willingness and awareness. Hanson asks the patient to say what the document is, who is being named and whether they are signing freely, with the named agent out of the room when possible.
7. Signing. The patient signs first. For a proxy, the two witnesses the family arranged sign next.
8. Notarial certificate. Acknowledgment on the proxy (if requested), HIPAA release and POA; jurat on any affidavit. Each certificate is completed in full under M.G.L. c.222 s.15 and sealed.
9. Delivery. Originals to the family or attorney; a clean scan to the care team or attorney the same day on request so the proxy is in the chart before the next shift.

We work around clinical care, not through it. Nurses, social workers and discharge planners at Massachusetts General, Brigham and Women’s, Beth Israel Deaconess, Tufts Medical Center, Boston Medical Center, Lahey in Burlington, Lowell General and the skilled nursing and hospice facilities of Middlesex and Essex counties see us regularly, and the routine is the same each time.

• We call the floor before arriving to confirm visiting policy, room number and whether a quiet space is available.
• We check in at the nursing station, wear identification and follow any visitor list or screening the facility requires.
• We step out for clinical care and wait rather than asking staff to pause.
• We bring our own pens, journal, loose certificates and a hard writing surface; we do not borrow hospital supplies or ask staff to make copies.
• We respect HIPAA and discuss the patient only with the patient and the people the patient authorizes.
• We keep the signing short. Most bedside documents are done in 15 to 25 minutes.
• We never ask staff to serve as witnesses on the family’s behalf. If staff are permitted and willing, that is between the family and the facility.

Boston hospitals, bedside procedure and family roles are covered on our hospital notary service page for Boston and Massachusetts.

In our Tewksbury office each notarial act is $45. A mobile visit to a home is priced by zone with travel, one seal and 15 minutes included: from $125 in Zone 1 (Tewksbury, Gardner, Ashby, Athol), from $179 in Zone 2 (Lowell, Billerica, Andover, Chelmsford, Dracut, Lawrence, Worcester, Fitchburg, Leominster, Concord, Burlington, Woburn and 40 more towns) and from $250 in Zone 3 (Boston, Cambridge, Newton, Lexington, Wellesley, Weston, Lynn, Gloucester, North Andover and 110 more). Hospital, nursing home and hospice visits are quoted at booking based on the facility’s address and the coordination involved.

Zone is set by where the signing happens. A family in Tewksbury whose parent is at Beth Israel in Boston pays the Boston visit fee, because that is where the notary goes. Facility visits are confirmed and paid before we depart; if the signing cannot proceed after we arrive, the travel portion is not refunded, and there is no charge for a notarial act that was not performed. Powers of attorney signed at the same visit are covered on our power of attorney notarization page.

• Discharge planner finds no proxy. Patient at Lowell General is being discharged to a skilled nursing facility in two days. The social worker calls; the family brings two friends as witnesses; we execute the proxy and HIPAA release that afternoon and scan them to the case manager.
• Pre-surgery at Brigham and Women’s. The family wants the proxy, HIPAA release and POA signed before sedation. We coordinate with the pre-op nurse and finish before the patient is moved.
• Hospice admission. The hospice intake nurse notes the directive packet is incomplete. The attorney emails the documents; we meet the family at the hospice house with their witnesses; the MOLST is handled by the hospice physician separately.
• Out-of-state hospital wants a notarized proxy. A Massachusetts resident wintering in Florida is told the hospital prefers a notarized directive. We acknowledge the proxy and living will at the Tewksbury office for $45 per act before the trip.
• Guardianship petition. A daughter in Billerica swears an affidavit describing her mother’s condition for the Probate and Family Court; the clinician completes the medical certificate separately.
• Minor traveling with grandparents to Morocco. Parents sign a consent for medical treatment and a travel consent before Hanson in English and Arabic, then we apostille both.

A notary cannot give legal or medical advice, choose documents for you or say whether a form will achieve your goal. Hire Mobile Notary and Neighborhood Parcel are not a law firm. For which documents you need, consult a licensed Massachusetts elder law or estate planning attorney; for MOLST and DNR orders, speak with the care team. Our office is at 1215 Main St, Suite 115, Tewksbury, MA 01876, and we serve 177 Massachusetts cities and towns.