It’s here! Final Rights: Reclaiming the American Way of Death will be published June, 2011, but Funeral Consumers Alliance is shipping copies now ahead of bookstores!
Final Rights is the definitive book on the modern funeral industry. Written by FCA executive director Josh Slocum and Funeral Ethics Organization leader Lisa Carlson, Final Rights combines journalistic investigation with practical consumer advice. The only book of its kind, Final Rights unveils the tricks of the funeral trade (and how to avoid them) while calling out government regulators who dance to the $15-billion death industry’s tune when they’re supposed to be protecting you, the funeral consumer.
- In eight states the law says you have to hire a funeral home, even if you want to care for deceased relative privately.
- Almost $1 billion has been stolen from trust funds and insurance policies families paid for to ensure their last wishes were carried out. Where were the regulators?
- Interested in a formaldehyde-free funeral? Better be careful, as the conventional burial industry is finding creative ways to make your “green” send-off as pricey as possible.
- The Federal Trade Commission gives you specific protections when you buy from a funeral home, but they disappear when you get to the graveyard. Find out why, and how to watch your wallet at the graveside.
- Final Rights has a chapter on the laws in each state, written in plain English. Find out how well (or how badly) you’re protected from funeral fraud, and learn where your state needs to reform!
Every American who plans to die (that’s you) needs to read this book. Final Rights belongs on the bookshelf of every hospice worker, nurse, social worker, and elder-law attorney. Curious? Read the first chapter, Circling the Hearses, free.
Visit our bookstore to order Final Rights. Every copy you buy directly from FCA will put dollars behind our mission to protect the public from exploitation and funeral fraud. You can also buy your state’s chapter for instant download.
Also, see our links to organizations in several states that specialize in helping you navigate a home funeral.
