Hi Eileen, I hope you check back here for the answer, and that you realize you didn’t send an email, but left a comment. Without your email address, I can’t write directly to you. You wrote: I am a chaplain in a hospital and chaplains are charged with releasing the body of the deceased. We have always released the body to a funeral home, but recently a family member requested to take the body. We were unprepared for this and would like to know what rules govern this in Georgia. How do we advise a family? Do they need any documentation. To what extent are we responsible for what happens with the body after the release? REPLY: Many of us have forgotten that familiy-directed funerals were once the norm in America. Many mistakenly believe they’re illegal. While it varies from state to state, families should have the same basic paperwork you require from a funeral director. Here’s how it works in Georgia: 1. The family must get the doctor’s signature on the death certificate, then complete the remaining info. The family must file this within 72 hours of the death. 2. Under GA law, a doctor or coroner can allow a body to be removed without requiring additional paperwork. Of course, you should ask the family to sign acknowledgment that they took custody of the body, just as you would require for a funeral home. 3. You’re not responsible at all after the family takes the body. How could you be? Are you responsible for what a funeral home does with the body? Of course not. Remember, this deceased is the family’s own kin, just as much as their living relatives are when you release a patient to return home. Also, I would personally like to know if a person’s body can be transported from here to Michigan without embalming. Is there a prescribed container for a transport by air or ground? How would it be aranged? REPLY: I do not believe Michigan requires embalming for out of state transport, or that Georgia requires it to receive a body. Did somebody make this claim to you? Whenever someone says a law requires or prohibits something, insist that they show you the law. Usually, it doesn’t exist. No, there’s no “prescribed container,” if you mean “required by law.” In an automobile, any casket-shaped container will do. When bodies are shipped by plane, they’re usually in what’s called an “air tray.” These may or may not contain a casket. I hope this helps. Josh Slocum Exec. Director, FCA
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR BLOG
NEWS CATEGORIES
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR BLOG
NEWS CATEGORIES
