Undertaken With Love

Photo of New York state capitol by jimmywayne22

This state's status: New York restricts the right of families to care for their own dead. You may want to consider becoming a home funeral advocate working to remove these restrictions as Joyce Mitchell successfully did in Utah. A good place to start in New York would be to contact Elvira Hoffman in Long Island or Dick Bentley, (518) 359-9300, in the Adirondacks of Upstate New York. 

Searchable Online General Statutes

Laws of New York

Resources Specific to Funeral Law

Bureau of Funeral Directing (external link)

Department of Health (external link)

Issues with Current New York Funeral Law--a website recommended to us by Dick Bentley.

In general, regulations promulgated by departments of health, such as required procedures in filing death certificates, must be followed by families caring for their own dead, while regulations promulgated by funeral service regulatory boards are binding only on funeral providers (but may affect home funerals indirectly to the extent that a family chooses to engage the limited services of licensed providers or in a few states is required to do so).   

Resources Specific to Home Funeral Laws

The New York State Department of Health makes this statement concerning the illegality of family-directed funerals in that state:

“In New York State, only a licensed and registered funeral director may make funeral arrangements for the care, moving, preparation and burial or cremation of a deceased person. At the least, the funeral director will file the death certificate, transfer the body, coordinate with cemetery or crematory representatives, make the necessary preparations, and move the body to the cemetery or crematory.”

The website US Funerals Online similarly makes this statement:

“In New York State, the consumer chooses the services and merchandise for the burial service and advises the funeral director of the decision made by the family of the deceased.  However, the family cannot make funeral arrangements for the any of the following:  care, moving, preparation, burial or cremation of the body.  Only a licensed and registered funeral director can make these arrangements.  He or she will file the death certificate, have the body transferred from the home or hospital and coordinate with the representative of the cemetery or crematory for the services required by the family.  They will of course make whatever preparations are necessary and move the body from the funeral parlor to the cemetery or crematory.”

The site also notes that the New York State Funeral Directors Association (NYSFDA), founded in 1889, “is the nationally recognized leader of state funeral directory associations in the United States.  With headquarters located in the state capital in Albany, this is the oldest association of funeral directors in the country.  The membership of this trade association is comprised of 750 funeral parlors and is considered to be a powerful organization. NYSFDA is actively involved in Government lobbying at the local as well as at the regulatory level.” [emphasis added]

Go figure.

Elvira Hoffman sent us this summary and analysis of New York state requirements regarding home funerals:

New York has long been considered a leader in death care legislation.  For example, the protection given preneed funds in this state is the best in the country because the funds remain the property of the person for whom they are deposited and can be withdrawn, interest included, by that person.  If a person is applying for Medicaid or SSI, the funds must be placed in an irrevocable trust and unused funds go to the government.

The General Price List, available at a funeral home is a simple document, usually one page in length that lists goods and services to be selected individually.  The only packages that can be listed are direct cremation, immediate burial and transferring of remains, and receiving of remains.  This protects consumers against overselling.  The funeral industry for the past several years has been vigorously backing legislation to allow the sale of funeral packages.  Many consumer organizations are actively opposing the change.

Recently, perhaps as a result of the hospice movement, or perhaps as a result of escalating death care costs, there is an increasing interest in family-directed funerals.   Under current New York law, home funerals are lawful as long as long as the restrictions stated below are respected..  The deceased can be bathed and dressed and casketed by the family at home.  Viewing or visitation is easily managed at the family’s convenience.  The body can be cooled by ice packs or other means and the family can transport the body to the cemetery or crematory with documents obtained by the funeral director. 

 While home funerals are quite possible under New York law, a funeral director must be hired to:

•    File the death certificate. The person, usually a physician, is required to sign this document. An argument against this is: Most of the other information on this document is obtained from the family.  With the improvement in technology, filing online could be within the reach of the physician and the person responsible for final disposition of the deceased.  Filing could be done a town or county clerk’s office upon presentation of a picture identification of the person responsible for the final disposition of the deceased.
•    Obtain the burial and transit permits.  An argument against this is: This function is ministerial.  The documents could be handed to the person filing the death certificate at the clerk’s office as easily as to the funeral director.
•    Be present at the final point of disposition.  In the state of New York this means the cemetery for interment or the crematory for cremation.  No special skills are required that are not within the capabilities of the average New Yorker.
•    Additionally, there is requirement in the Code that a body be transported in a rigid container concealed from view from outside the vehicle. Many vehicles in use could transport the deceased in accordance with this provision.

Funeral Consumer Alliance members in upstate New York have launched a vigorous campaign to change the law to eliminate the need to hire a funeral director.
 

Organizations and Individuals

Funeral Consumers Alliance chapters (external link).

Elvira Hoffman is a funeral consumer and home funeral advocate in the Long Island/New York City area. Dick Bentley is the same, but resides in the Adirondacks of upstate New York.

Please help us develop this section by emailing us with the names of organizations and individuals that serve as noncommercial resources to families serving as their own funeral directors in New York. Please include contact information (phone, website, email).