(1)All public
officers, agents, and servants, and all officers, agents, and servants of every
county, city, township, borough, district, and other municipality, and every
almshouse, prison, morgue, hospital, or other municipal or other public institution,
and all other persons having charge or control over unclaimed dead human bodies
required to be buried at public expense shall use reasonable effort to ascertain if
the deceased person has any relative, friend, or other representative who will
assume charge of the body for burial at his or her expense. If the effort does not
result in the discovery of a claimant within twenty-four hours after death, the
officers, agents, or other persons shall immediately notify the anatomical board or
such person as may from time to time be des
Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI
(1) All public
officers, agents, and servants, and all officers, agents, and servants of every
county, city, township, borough, district, and other municipality, and every
almshouse, prison, morgue, hospital, or other municipal or other public institution,
and all other persons having charge or control over unclaimed dead human bodies
required to be buried at public expense shall use reasonable effort to ascertain if
the deceased person has any relative, friend, or other representative who will
assume charge of the body for burial at his or her expense. If the effort does not
result in the discovery of a claimant within twenty-four hours after death, the
officers, agents, or other persons shall immediately notify the anatomical board or
such person as may from time to time be designated by the board as its duly
authorized officer or agent, when such unclaimed body or bodies come into his or
her possession, charge, or control. In any county that is entirely located more than
one hundred fifty miles from any accredited medical or dental school, the minimum
period of notification shall be extended to forty-eight hours. The officers, agents, or
other persons, without fee or reward, shall deliver the unclaimed body to the
anatomical board and permit the board or its agents to take and remove all the
unclaimed bodies to be used for the advancement of medical and anatomical
sciences.
(2) Notice shall be given to the anatomical board in all cases, but the body
must not be delivered if any relative, by blood or marriage, has previously claimed
the body for burial at the expense of the relative, in which case the body must be
surrendered to the claimant for interment. Further, the body must not be delivered
if any representative of a fraternal society of which the deceased was a member, or
a representative of any charitable organization, or if any friend of the deceased
indigent person claims the body for burial prior to delivery to the board, with the
burial at the expense of the fraternal society, charitable organization, or friend. In
the case of death of any person whose body is required to be buried at public
expense and the duly authorized officer or agent of the anatomical board deems
the body unfit for anatomical purposes, he or she shall notify the board of county
commissioners or agency in charge of indigent persons in the county in which the
person dies, in writing, and the board of county commissioners or agency shall
direct a person to take charge of the body of the deceased indigent person, and
cause it to be buried, and draw warrants upon the treasurer of the county for the
payment of expenses.
(3) Warrants for the payment of the expenses of the burial of any person
whose body is required to be buried at public expense must not be drawn or paid
except upon the certificate of the duly authorized officer or agent of the anatomical
board to the effect that the unclaimed body is unfit for anatomical purposes due to
decomposition or contagious disease, and that the provisions of this part 3 have
been complied with. If, through the failure of any person to deliver the body of a
deceased indigent person as required by this part 3, the unclaimed body is unfit for
anatomical purposes, and is certified as unfit by the duly authorized officer or agent
of the anatomical board, the body must be buried in accordance with the provisions
of this part 3, and the person who failed to deliver the unclaimed body shall pay to
the county treasurer the expenses incurred. Upon the refusal or failure of the
person, on demand, to pay the expenses, the board of county commissioners, or
such other agency as may be in charge of indigent persons in the county, may bring
suit to recover the expenses, and the expenses may be recovered as debts
collectible by law.