Current through September 17, 2024
The following applies to transportation and final
disposition of dead human bodies who have died due to a communicable disease,
transporting a dead human body in-state and out-of-state, and final disposition
requirements.
006.01
DECEASED DUE TO AN IMMEDIATELY REPORTABLE COMMUNICABLE
DISEASE. Persons who have died due to any communicable disease
listed in 173 NAC 1, which must be reported immediately, must be completely
wrapped before removal from the premises. These requirements do not prohibit a
public funeral, nor does it relieve persons who are quarantined as contacts
from quarantine requirements. Bodies dead of such communicable diseases must
be:
(1) Thoroughly and promptly embalmed and
be held in isolation from the public for a period of 24 hours following the
embalming;
(2) Encased immediately
after death in a body transfer case or shipping case that is constructed out of
20 gauge steel and is hermetically sealed, and under no condition will the body
be removed from the container; or
(3) Cremated immediately. If visitation is to
occur prior to cremation, the body must be thoroughly and promptly embalmed and
held in isolation from the public for a period of 24 hours following the
embalming.
006.01(A)
DECEASED DUE TO A COMMUNICABLE DISEASE NOT REQUIRED TO BE
IMMEDIATELY REPORTED. Persons who have died due to a communicable
disease other than those listed in 173 NAC 1 which must be reported
immediately, require no further special handling.
006.02
OUT-OF-STATE
TRANSPORTATION. When a body is to be transported out of the state
of Nebraska, the Nebraska funeral director and embalmer in charge of the body
must determine the regulations governing the transportation of bodies in the
other state or states, and must comply fully with the requirements of such
regulations, must oversee the removal while the body is in Nebraska, and must
comply with the requirements under 172 NAC 68 and with the Interstate Commerce
Commission's requirements for transportation by common carrier.
006.03
IN-STATE
TRANSPORTATION. Dead human bodies, which have not been embalmed,
may not be transported by common carrier, unless the body is placed immediately
after death in a body transfer case or shipping case that is constructed out of
20 gauge steel and is hermetically sealed. Transportation may be made by
privately owned conveyance under the supervision and responsibility of a
licensed funeral Director. Embalmed bodies may be transported by either common
carrier or private carrier.
006.04
FINAL DISPOSITION OF EMBALMED AND UN-EMBALMED BODIES.
Final disposition of a dead human body must meet the following:
006.04(A)
UN-EMBALMED
BODY. Upon receipt of a dead human body, the licensee has 24 hours
to either bury, cremate, embalm, place in refrigerated storage, or place in a
hermetically sealed container, which cannot be reopened. If placing in
refrigerated storage, an un-embalmed body must:
(i) Be retained at a constant temperature of
less than 40 degrees Fahrenheit for not more than 8 days. An un-embalmed body
may be retained in storage beyond the 8 days only when:
(1) Written notification of a criminal
proceeding is received; or
(2) Upon
receipt of a court order.
(ii) When the body is removed from storage it
must be embalmed, buried, cremated, or placed in a hermetically sealed
container within 24 hours following the removal from storage.
006.04(B)
EMBALMED
BODY. Final disposition of a dead human body, which has been
embalmed or been placed in a hermetically sealed container, must be made within
30 days after death. If death did not occur in Nebraska, final disposition of a
dead human body must be made within 30 days after receipt of the dead human
body.
006.04(B)(i)
EXTENSION OF
FINAL DISPOSITION. If unforeseen circumstances occur which would
prevent final disposition of a dead human body within the required 30 days
after death, the license holder must request an extension from the Director of
the Division of Public Health to extend the final disposition date. The
Director may authorize an extension of the required final disposition date of a
dead human body up to 30 days. If final disposition has not occurred by the
ending date of the extension, the license holder must seek court action
regarding final disposition of the decedent's remains. To attain an extension,
the licensee must submit a written request to the Department, which includes
the following:
(1) Name of funeral
establishment and license holder overseeing the final disposition;
(2) Name of the deceased;
(3) Date of death of the deceased;
and
(4) An explanation of the basis
for extending the final disposition, such as but not limited to family dispute,
criminal investigation, military burial, shipments outside of the United
States, or similar acts.
