Burial and cremation legislationBurial and Cremation (Cemetery) Regulations 2005 and Burial and Cremation (Handling of Human Remains) Regulations 2005 These Regulations were Gazetted on 22 June 2005. The Cemetery Regulations became effective from that date and the Handling of Human Remains Regulations became effective from 1 July 2005. Copies of the Regulations are available from the Tasmanian Legislation Website. The legislation was developed for public health reasons. It provides clarity and direction to those individuals and organisations involved in the handling of human remains, and certainty to the community as a whole. The legislation establishes standards for the transportation, handling and storage of human remains that will guard against the risk of infection arising from the inappropriate handling of human remains. An improved identification process is provided for in the Regulations to ensure that human remains are properly identified throughout the disposition process. Prior to the introduction of these Regulations there could be many practical difficulties experienced in obtaining a medical certificate of cause of death. The Regulations introduce a new “Declaration of Life extinct” process that enables a paramedic, nurse, ambulance officer or other person delegated by a medical practitioner to declare life extinct, thus enabling the body of a deceased person to be removed from the place of death. A general practitioner is still required to provide a medical certificate of cause of death at a later time. The transportation, handling and storage of human remains must also be carried out in a manner that preserves public safety and maintains the dignity of the deceased person. The Regulations establish standards for transportation, handling and storage. The Regulations apply to any business engaged in the handling, storage or transport of human remains or the preparation of human remains for interment or cremation. However, the Regulations do not apply to hospitals or nursing homes, any school of anatomy established under section 5 of the Anatomy Act 1964 or any activity that is incidental to the donation of human remains. "Declaration of Life Extinct" form The Handling of Human Remains Regulations allow a paramedic, nurse, Ambulance Officer or other person appointed by a medical practitioner to issue a Declaration of Life Extinct which then permits the body of a deceased person to be removed from the place of death. Supplies of the form have been distributed to the key groups that may be required to issue such a certificate. Additional supplies of the form, in triplicate self-carboning sets, are available for purchase from the Printing Authority of Tasmania. However, the form is also available free as a download. The Declaration of Life Extinct form includes details of the required distribution. One copy of the form is to accompany the body, one is to be provided to the appointing medical practitioner who has agreed to provide the death certificate and one is to be forwarded to the Registrar of Births, Deaths and Marriages at GPO Box 198 HOBART TAS 7001 or by fax to 03 6233 6444. Identification tags The Regulations also provide that, prior to moving a deceased person, an identification tag is to be attached to the body by somebody who knows or can confirm the identity of the deceased person. The Regulations require that an identification tag is to be in a form approved by Director of Local Government. For the purposes of these Regulations the Director has determined that this approval should be outcome-based. That is, an identification tag is to be of adequate size and material to enable the deceased person’s name, and the location of the deceased person, to be included so that the details remain legible and the identification tag is not easily removed from the body. There are a variety of identification tags already commonly in use throughout the human services industry that will achieve this outcome and will be acceptable for use. An identification tag can only be replaced by certain persons and in a process requiring the replacement to be witnessed by another person. The replacement of an identification tag other than by these means is an offence attracting a fine of up to $500.
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