The Legacy Act of 2025 asks the federal government to study whether the United States should create a national system for storing important end-of-life documents. These documents—like advance directives (instructions about medical care if you can't communicate), organ donor registrations, healthcare proxies (someone authorized to make medical decisions for you), powers of attorney, and living wills—would be stored securely and confidentially, and people could access them for free.

Here's what would happen: The Secretary of Health and Human Services would work with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (a respected independent research organization) to study how such a system could work. The study would examine what it would take to build and maintain this kind of secure national database. The researchers would report back to Congress with an update on their progress after 2 years, and then deliver their full findings and recommendations after 4 years.

The main benefit is convenience and peace of mind. Right now, these important documents are scattered across different places—some with your doctor, some with a lawyer, some at home—making them hard to find when needed. A centralized system would help ensure that when someone passes away or becomes unable to make decisions, their wishes and important documents are easy for authorized family members or representatives to locate and access.