Disability & Long-Term Care · Surprise rank #240
Person With an Intellectual or Developmental Disability Can't Consent to Major Medical Care? NY Has a Free Alternative to Court
New York's Surrogate Decision-Making Committee provides a no-cost alternative to court for certain major medical and end-of-life treatment decisions for people who lack capacity and have no legally authorized surrogate.
Who
Eligible people with intellectual/developmental disabilities and certain other qualifying individuals who lack decision-making capacity and an available legally authorized surrogate.
What to do
Start here: Have the provider submit the appropriate SDMC 200-series major-medical-care or 300-series end-of-life forms to the Justice Center.
Eligibility: The person and proposed decision must fall within SDMC jurisdiction and there must not be another legally authorized decision-maker able to provide the needed consent.
What you get
A volunteer SDMC panel can determine capacity, need for treatment and consent for covered major medical procedures or end-of-life decisions.
Benefit: A formal treatment-consent decision without hiring a lawyer and starting a guardianship/court proceeding for the covered decision.
Possible value: Potentially substantial avoided legal cost and delay; no cash award.
Good to know
Important: SDMC does not replace guardianship for every life decision and does not handle ordinary emergency treatment that can proceed under other legal authority.
Availability: Active
Why people miss it: Families and providers may assume court guardianship is the only way to authorize a serious medical decision when no surrogate is available.
Sources reviewed: Aug 10, 2026