Bill Text: NY A02141 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Provides for the filing of death certificates for unclaimed cadavers and anatomical donations received for educational purposes.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-03 - referred to health [A02141 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-A02141-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 2141 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 17, 2017 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. PEOPLES-STOKES, ENGLEBRIGHT -- read once and referred to the Committee on Health AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to death, burial and removal permits The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 2 4142-a to read as follows: 3 § 4142-a. Death certificates; unclaimed cadavers and anatomical 4 donations for educational purposes. An institution authorized by arti- 5 cle forty-two or forty-three of this chapter to receive unclaimed cadav- 6 ers or anatomical gifts for educational purposes that elects to file 7 death certificates, shall: 8 (a) obtain the personal and statistical particulars required for the 9 certificate of death from a competent person acquainted with the facts 10 and qualified to supply them and enter them on the certificate together 11 with the name and address of his or her informant; 12 (b) present the certificate promptly to attending physician or nurse 13 practitioner who shall forthwith certify to the facts of death, provide 14 the medical information required by the certificate and sign the medical 15 certificate of death, or to the coroner or medical examiner in those 16 cases where so required by this article or, when a death occurs in a 17 hospital, except in those cases where certificates are issued by coron- 18 ers or medical examiners, to the person in charge of such hospital or 19 his or her designated representative, who shall obtain the medical 20 certificate of death as prescribed in section forty-one hundred forty- 21 one-a of this title; 22 (c) state the facts required on the certificate of death relative to 23 the date and place of burial, cremation or removal, over his signature 24 and with his or her address; and EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD03214-01-7A. 2141 2 1 (d) prior to the disposition of the remains, file the certificate of 2 death with the registrar of the district in which the death occurred as 3 provided in section forty-one hundred forty of this title. 4 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 4140 of the public health law is amended 5 to read as follows: 6 2. If the certificate of death is properly executed and complete, the 7 registrar of the district in which the death occurred shall then issue a 8 burial or removal permit to the funeral director [or], undertaker, or an 9 institution authorized by article forty-two or forty-three of this chap- 10 ter to receive unclaimed cadavers or anatomical gifts for educational 11 purposes. In case the death occurred from a disease which is designated 12 in the sanitary code as a communicable disease, no permit for the 13 removal or other disposition of the body shall be issued by the regist- 14 rar, except to a funeral director or undertaker licensed in accordance 15 with the provisions of this chapter, under such conditions as may be 16 prescribed in the sanitary code. 17 § 3. Subdivision 1 and paragraph (b) of subdivision 2 of section 4144 18 of the public health law, as amended by chapter 378 of the laws of 2016, 19 are amended to read as follows: 20 1. The body of any person whose death occurs in this state, or which 21 shall be found dead herein shall not be interred, deposited in a vault 22 or tomb, cremated or otherwise disposed of, or removed from this state, 23 or be temporarily held pending further disposition more than seventy-two 24 hours after death, unless a permit for burial, removal, or other dispo- 25 sition thereof shall have been properly issued by the registrar of vital 26 statistics of the registration district in which the death occurred or 27 the body was found; provided, however, that an institution authorized by 28 article forty-two or forty-three of this chapter to receive unclaimed 29 cadavers or anatomical gifts for educational purposes may apply for and 30 receive such permit or a licensed funeral director may apply for and 31 receive such permit on behalf of any person or institution authorized by 32 article forty-two or forty-three of this chapter to receive unclaimed 33 cadavers or anatomical gifts. 34 (b) The funeral director [or], undertaker or an institution authorized 35 by article forty-two or forty-three of this chapter to receive unclaimed 36 cadavers or anatomical gifts for educational purposes who shall make any 37 removal before a permit is issued by the registrar, shall return the 38 body to the registration district where death occurred, whenever the 39 coroner, medical examiner, or district attorney shall request such 40 return of the body for investigation or post-mortem examination. 41 § 4. Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subdivision 2 and subdivision 4 of 42 section 4145 of the public health law, paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 as 43 amended by chapter 543 of the laws of 2003, paragraph (b) of subdivision 44 2 as amended by chapter 198 of the laws of 2005, are amended to read as 45 follows: 46 (a) The funeral director [or], undertaker or an institution authorized 47 by article forty-two or forty-three of this chapter to receive unclaimed 48 cadavers or anatomical gifts for educational purposes shall deliver the 49 burial permit to the person in charge of the place of burial or other 50 disposition before interring or otherwise disposing of the body or shall 51 attach the removal or transit permit to the box containing the body, 52 when shipped by any transportation company, which permit shall accompany 53 the remains to its destination, where, if within this state, it shall be 54 delivered to the person in charge of the place of burial or other dispo- 55 sition.A. 2141 3 1 (b) Any person or other entity owning, operating, managing, or desig- 2 nated to receive the body of a deceased person at a place of burial, 3 cremation, or other final disposition in this state, who receives the 4 body of a deceased person, shall provide a receipt for the body to the 5 funeral director, undertaker, an institution authorized by article 6 forty-two or forty-three of this chapter to receive unclaimed cadavers 7 or anatomical gifts for educational purposes or registered resident who 8 delivered such body. Each receipt shall (i) be endorsed by both such 9 person and the funeral director, undertaker or registered resident, (ii) 10 indicate the date the body was delivered, (iii) include the name of the 11 funeral director, undertaker, an institution authorized by article 12 forty-two or forty-three of this chapter to receive unclaimed cadavers 13 or anatomical gifts for educational purposes or registered resident 14 delivering the body and the registration number of such funeral direc- 15 tor, undertaker or registered resident, (iv) include the name of the 16 registered funeral firm, the funeral director, undertaker, an institu- 17 tion authorized by article forty-two or forty-three of this chapter to 18 receive unclaimed cadavers or anatomical gifts for educational purposes 19 or registered resident represents, (v) include the name of the deceased 20 person as it appears on the burial, cremation, or transit permit, and 21 (vi) include the name of the owner, operator, manager, or person in 22 charge of the place of burial, cremation, or other final disposition who 23 received the body of the deceased person. A copy of such receipt shall 24 be retained by the owner, operator, manager, or person in charge of the 25 place of burial, cremation, or other final disposition for a period of 26 not less than four years, and shall be made available for inspection by 27 the division of cemeteries during normal business hours. The original 28 copy of every such receipt shall be retained by the licensed funeral 29 firm for a period of not less than four years pursuant to the rules and 30 regulations of the department governing the maintenance of records. 31 4. When burying or otherwise disposing of the body of a deceased 32 person in a cemetery or burial place having no person in charge, the 33 funeral director [or], undertaker or an institution authorized by arti- 34 cle forty-two or forty-three of this chapter to receive unclaimed cadav- 35 ers or anatomical gifts for educational purposes shall (a) sign the 36 burial or removal permit, giving the date of burial; (b) write across 37 the face of the permit the words "No person in charge;" and (c) file the 38 burial or removal permit within three days with the registrar of the 39 district in which the cemetery is located. 40 § 5. Section 4212 of the public health law is amended by adding a new 41 subdivision 4 to read as follows: 42 4. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an institution author- 43 ized by section forty-two hundred eleven of this title may file certif- 44 icates and permits pursuant to sections forty-one hundred forty-two, 45 forty-one hundred forty-four and forty-one hundred forty-five of this 46 chapter for any unclaimed cadavers received for educational purposes. 47 The institution shall ensure the individuals filing permits or trans- 48 porting cadavers have the necessary education and training. 49 § 6. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 4302-a 50 to read as follows: 51 § 4302-a. Using anatomical gifts for education. Notwithstanding any 52 other provision of law, an accredited medical school or dental school, 53 college or university, bank or storage facility for education, research, 54 advancement of medical or dental science, therapy or transplant author- 55 ized to receive anatomical donations may file certificates and permits 56 pursuant to sections forty-one hundred forty-two, forty-one hundredA. 2141 4 1 forty-four and forty-one hundred forty-five of this chapter for 2 donations made directly to such institution. The institution shall 3 ensure the individuals filing permits or transporting cadavers have the 4 necessary education and training. 5 § 7. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall 6 have become a law.
