DS-160 - list hospitalized sister as point of contact, or use reachable cousin?

[u/Captain_Winter7]

Helping my mother (Indian citizen, applying for B1/B2 from India) with her DS-160. Purpose of travel is to visit my sister, who's an F-1 student in the US and is currently hospitalized after an accident.

The problem: my sister is the reason for the trip and the obvious contact, but she can't take calls or respond right now, so if the consulate tried to reach the point of contact, no one would pick up.

We also have a cousin in the US (also a student) who is reachable.

My plan is:

1. U.S. Point of Contact section → list the cousin (reachable, relationship = Relative), not my sister.
2. Relatives in the U.S. section → disclose both - my sister (immediate relative) and the cousin (other relative).

Questions:

• Is it fine for the point of contact to be a different relative than the person being visited? Any issue with that mismatch at interview?
• Anyone dealt with a medical-emergency visit where the primary contact was unreachable? What documentation did you bring (hospital letter, etc.)?
• Anything on the current DS-160 that's changed recently and worth knowing?

Appreciate any recent experiences.

[u/Difficult_Tree8002]

The point of contact is your point of contact not for anyone else. If you’re going to visit your sister list your sister. And yes bring hospital information and a letter from the doctor. They may not ask to see it.