Current through Reg. 50, No. 249, December 24, 2024
(1) When a death is reported to the medical
examiner pursuant to Section
406.12, F.S., or the medical
examiner learns or is notified of a death in his or her district the medical
examiner shall:
(a) Make inquiry to determine
whether to examine, investigate, or autopsy pursuant to Section
406.11, F.S., and to determine
whether to take charge of the body pursuant to Section
406.13, F.S.
(b) Record the findings and conclusions
supporting the medical examiner's determination of cause of death in the
permanent records of the medical examiner, in sufficient detail to allow a
review of the circumstances, regardless of whether examination of the body or
certification of the death by the medical examiner is required.
(c) Notify the person having custody of the
body when the medical examiner has relinquished charge of a body not in the
custody of the medical examiner.
(2) If a medical examiner makes an
investigation solely pursuant to Section
406.11(1)(c),
F.S., the medical examiner shall relinquish charge of the body when the medical
examiner has autopsied the body, or has determined the cause of death by
inquiry.
(3) If a medical examiner
becomes aware of a death, apparently from disease, he or she shall investigate
it as a death from a disease constituting a threat to the public health, if:
(a) The investigation is requested by an
official of the Department of Health pursuant to Section
381.0011 or
381.0012, F.S., or
(b) The medical examiner determines that
additional information concerning the cause and mechanism of death, beyond that
available in the decedent's medical history, is needed to protect the public
health.
(4) If the
medical examiner takes charge of a body pursuant to Section
406.11(1)(a) or
(b), F.S., he or she shall:
(a) Inform the person who has custody of the
body, pursuant to Section
406.12, F.S., that the body
should not be embalmed or otherwise prepared for burial or disturbed until
examined by the medical examiner;
(b) Arrange for transportation of the
body;
(c) Notify the appropriate
law enforcement official having jurisdiction over persons, criminal scenes or
investigations, physical evidence, or records, pursuant to Section
406.14, F.S.;
(d) Ensure that the legally authorized person
is notified that the medical examiner is investigating the death, when this can
be done without hindering the legal purpose of the investigation and the
identification and location of the legally authorized person is readily
available. The contact with the legally authorized person, or the attempt to
contact, shall be documented in the medical examiner's case file, whether such
contact or attempt to contact is made by the medical examiner or through other
persons or agencies such as hospital personnel, law enforcement agencies,
funeral homes or friends of the deceased; and,
(e) Promptly notify the legally authorized
person when the body can be released, provided the identification and location
of the legally authorized person is known.
(5) Section
406.05, F.S., provides for
cooperative arrangements among the several districts and Section
406.08(2),
F.S., provides for fee payment when an autopsy is performed on a body when the
death occurred outside the district. When such a cooperative arrangement is for
the purpose of transporting the body of a person who dies in one medical
examiner district (hereafter, district of jurisdiction) to another for autopsy
or examination (hereafter, district of examination):
(a) The physician performing the examination
must have a statutory appointment as an associate medical examiner in the
district of jurisdiction pursuant to the provisions of Rule
11G-1.002, F.A.C.
(b) For each transfer of a body the medical
examiner in the district of jurisdiction shall maintain in his or her files
documentation of the agreement for the transfer; shall assign a case number
from the district of jurisdiction; and shall maintain copies of any reports of
examination or opinion by the appointed associate medical examiner, records of
identification of the body, and records of the transfer and release of the body
to the legally authorized person.
(c) The medical examiner of the district of
examination shall maintain in his or her files documentation of the agreement
for the transfer and shall include the case number of the district of
jurisdiction on all signed reports.
(d) Statistics that are sent to the Medical
Examiners Commission staff shall be reported by the district of
examination.
Rulemaking Authority
406.04,
406.05,
406.08 FS. Law Implemented
406.02,
406.04,
406.05,
406.08,
406.11,
406.13
FS.
New 10-18-81, Amended 7-10-85, Formerly 11G-2.01, Amended
8-27-87, 11-24-87, 10-14-96, 7-6-99, 6-9-08,
5-21-12.
