How to Get a Do Not Resuscitate Form in Arizona

To get a Do Not Resuscitate form in Arizona, download the state’s prehospital medical care directive for free from the Arizona Attorney General’s Life Care Planning page or the Arizona Department of Health Services, print it on orange paper, and have it signed by you, a licensed healthcare provider, and a witness. That’s the whole process. The details below matter because emergency responders are trained to reject any form that doesn’t meet every statutory requirement.

Where to Download the Form

Two official state sources publish the form, and both are free.

The Arizona Attorney General’s Office publishes a Life Care Planning packet that includes the DNR on an orange background alongside a living will, healthcare power of attorney, and mental health power of attorney. You can also request a printed packet by calling the Community Outreach and Education Section at 602-542-2123.¹
The Arizona Department of Health Services offers the directive in letter and wallet sizes through its EMS and Trauma System page.²

Many doctors’ offices, hospitals, and hospice organizations also stock printed copies. If a provider hands you one, check that it’s on orange paper before you sign.

Why the Paper Has to Be Orange

Arizona law doesn’t use the phrase “Do Not Resuscitate order” in the statute. The legal name is a prehospital medical care directive, authorized under A.R.S. Section 36-3251. The statute requires it to be printed on an orange background. EMS personnel are trained to look for orange paper as a quick visual signal, and a form printed on white paper is not legally valid, no matter how correctly it’s filled out.³

If you print at home, you’ll need orange paper or cardstock, which most office supply stores carry cheaply. A photocopy on orange paper has the same legal weight as the original, so you can make several once the form is fully signed.³

Filling Out the Form

The form has two sides, and every field matters. A missing signature or blank identifying field can be enough for responders to disregard it.

Side One: Patient Information

You’ll sign or mark the form and fill in the date. The form then requires either a recent photograph attached to it or a physical description that includes your date of birth, sex, eye color, hair color, and race. The photograph or description lets EMS responders confirm the person in front of them matches the person named on the form. If you use a photograph, make it a recent one. You’ll also list your hospice program, if any, along with your physician’s name and phone number.³

Side Two: Provider and Witness Signatures

A licensed healthcare provider must sign, confirming they explained the form and its consequences and that the signer understands “death may result from any refused care listed above.” A witness must then sign, attesting that you appeared to be of sound mind and free from duress when you executed the form.³

All three signatures are required: patient (or authorized representative), licensed healthcare provider, and witness. A form missing any of them is incomplete, and EMS personnel are not required to accept directives that fall short of the statutory requirements.³

Who Can Sign If the Patient Can’t

Under A.R.S. Section 36-3251, any person may execute a prehospital medical care directive. The statute doesn’t set an age, but the witness has to attest that the signer appeared to be of sound mind and free from duress, which establishes a practical competency standard.³

If a person is no longer competent to sign, an agent designated under a healthcare power of attorney (A.R.S. Section 36-3221) or a court-appointed guardian for health care decisions signs on their behalf. The statute says the agent or guardian “shall sign if the person is no longer competent to do so.”³

When there’s no healthcare power of attorney or guardian and the patient can’t make decisions, Arizona law provides a priority list of surrogate decision-makers: spouse (unless legally separated), the majority of adult children available, a parent, an unmarried patient’s domestic partner, a sibling, or a close friend familiar with the patient’s wishes.⁴

What the Form Covers, and What It Doesn’t

The directive applies only to cardiopulmonary resuscitation if your heart or breathing stops. That covers chest compressions, intubation, defibrillation, artificial ventilation, and advanced cardiac life support drugs. It doesn’t prevent other medical care. Emergency responders will still provide IV fluids, oxygen, pain management, and comfort care while honoring a valid DNR.³

The form is also narrower than people often assume in another way. It operates in the field, before you reach a hospital. If you’re admitted, the hospital may require a separate in-hospital order. And a DNR is not a living will and not a healthcare power of attorney.⁵ A living will covers broader end-of-life treatments like artificial nutrition and hydration once you have a terminal or irreversible condition and can no longer communicate. A healthcare power of attorney names someone to make medical decisions for you. Many people complete all three, because a DNR alone doesn’t tell anyone what you want if you’re incapacitated but haven’t gone into cardiac arrest.

Making Sure Responders Actually See It

A properly executed form buried in a filing cabinet won’t help in an emergency. Post it somewhere visible at home, like on the refrigerator or near the front door. If you split time between locations, keep an orange copy at each one.³

Arizona also allows an identifying bracelet worn on the wrist or ankle. It must have an orange background and display “Do Not Resuscitate” in bold type along with your name and your physician’s name. The statute specifies that the bracelet should look similar to a standard hospital identification bracelet.³

You can also register your directive with the Arizona Health Care Directives Registry. The Attorney General’s Life Care Planning packet includes a registration agreement for this purpose. Registration creates a centralized record healthcare providers can access if the physical form isn’t immediately at hand.⁵

Changing Your Mind or Replacing the Form

You can cancel your DNR at any time. Under A.R.S. Section 36-3251, a prehospital medical care directive remains effective until it is “revoked or superseded by a new document.”³

Physically destroying the form removes it from circulation. Executing a new prehospital medical care directive automatically supersedes any previous one. You can also verbally tell a healthcare provider you’re revoking it. Collect and destroy any posted copies, and notify your physician, so an outdated form doesn’t surface during an emergency. A patient who is conscious and able to communicate can also revoke the directive on the spot by telling EMS personnel they want resuscitation.

If You Already Have a DNR from Another State

Under A.R.S. Section 36-3208, a healthcare directive valid in the state where it was executed is valid in Arizona, provided it’s consistent with Arizona law. An out-of-state DNR should generally be recognized, but it won’t look like the orange form Arizona EMS personnel are trained to spot. If you’ve moved to Arizona, executing a new Arizona-specific form removes the ambiguity. You can also submit out-of-state directives to the Arizona Health Care Directives Registry, which will review them for consistency with Arizona statutes.⁶

1
Arizona Attorney General. Life Care Planning Document Packet – Orange DNR
2
Arizona Department of Health Services. Prehospital Medical Care Directive – DNR Wallet Size Form
3
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes Title 36 Section 36-3251 – Prehospital Medical Care Directives; Form; Effect; Immunity; Definitions
4
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes Title 36 Section 36-3231 – Surrogate Decision Makers; Priorities; Limitations
5
Arizona Attorney General. Life Care Planning Document Packet
6
Arizona Health Care Directives Registry. Can I Register Out of State Directives?