755 ILCS 66/ Disposition of Remains of the Indigent Act.

(755 ILCS 66/1)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Disposition of Remains of the Indigent Act.

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18.)

(755 ILCS 66/5)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 5. Purpose. The General Assembly recognizes:

(1) that each individual in the State regardless of his or her economic situation is entitled to a dignified disposition of his or her remains;

(2) that it is a matter of public concern and interest that the preparation, care, and final disposition of a deceased human body be attended to with appropriate observance and understanding;

(3) that it is a matter of public concern and interest that there is a due regard and respect for the reverent care of the human body, for those bereaved, and the overall spiritual dignity of every person;

(4) that the provision of cadavers and other human materials is a much-needed service for the advancement of medical, mortuary, and other sciences;

(5) that there is a critical shortage of cadavers necessary for the advancement of medical, mortuary, and other sciences;

(6) that the State has, in the past, paid for the burial and funeral of indigent individuals;

(7) that payment for such services is not now consistent with the needs or demands of the current State budget;

(8) that the State has had a long-standing policy that government officials who have custody of a body of any deceased person shall transfer such custody to any State medical college, school, or other institution of higher science education or school of mortuary science for advancement of medical, anatomical, biological, or mortuary science; and

(9) that current law provides that any county coroner may donate bodies not claimed by family members or friends.

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18.)

(755 ILCS 66/7)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 7. Definitions. As used in this Act:

"Department" means the Department of Public Health.

"Qualified medical science institution" means an institution of medical, mortuary, or other sciences meeting the requirements of Section 25 of this Act.

"State facility" means any facility, hospital, institution, morgue, or other place for bodies of deceased persons owned or operated by the State of Illinois, other than a qualified medical science institution.

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18.)

(755 ILCS 66/10)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 10. Indigent funeral and burial.

(a) If private funds are not available to pay funeral and burial costs and a request is made for those costs to an official of State or local government by an appropriate family member, executor, or agent empowered to direct the disposition of the decedent's remains, the official shall inform the appropriate family member, executor, or agent empowered to direct the disposition of the decedent's remains of the option to donate the remains for use in the advancement of medical science subject to any written directive of a will or other written instrument identified in Section 65 of the Crematory Regulation Act or in subsection (a) of Section 40 of the Disposition of Remains Act.

(b) The appropriate family member, executor, or agent empowered to direct the disposition of the decedent's remains is responsible for authorizing the use of such remains in accordance with the process of the specific qualified medical science institution.

(c) If funds are not otherwise available for burial or the cadaver has not been claimed by a family member or other responsible person, the coroner with custody may donate the cadaver for medical science purposes pursuant to Section 3-3034 of the Counties Code.

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18.)

(755 ILCS 66/15)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 15. Donation of unclaimed cadavers in the custody of the State.

(a) The director of any State facility in custody of a cadaver shall make reasonable efforts to contact a family member or other person responsible for the disposition of the remains for the purpose of claiming the remains.

(b) If a family member or other person responsible for the disposition of the remains requests the remains, the person must remove or make arrangements to remove the remains within 72 hours of notice from the facility.

(c) If, after making reasonable efforts to contact a family member or other person responsible for the disposition of the remains, the cadaver is unclaimed or if a person claiming the remains has failed to remove or make arrangements to remove the cadaver within 72 hours of notice from the facility, the State facility director shall contribute the cadaver to a qualified medical science institution for use in the advancement of medical science as designated by the Department under Section 30 of this Act unless it is necessary to preserve the body for law enforcement purposes or the decedent has left written instructions that he or she does not wish to be cremated or donated for medical science.

(d) The State facility director shall as soon as is practicable after the end of the 72-hour notice period:

(1) verify, if known, or make good faith efforts to discover, if not known, identifying information regarding the decedent, including ethnicity, religious affiliation, and former associations;

(2) after such verification or discovery, provide to the Department all information in its possession relating to the decedent;

(3) preserve all information submitted to the Department along with information on how the State facility obtained or attempted to obtain information regarding the decedent, including persons contacted, time of contact, name of contact, and documents reviewed.

(e) If a cadaver is contributed to a qualified medical science institution under this Section, the State facility director shall provide to the institution the name, address, e-mail address, and telephone number of the family member or other responsible party, if known.

(f) A qualified medical science institution receiving a cadaver pursuant to this Section is responsible for all costs related to the contribution, including transportation of the remains.

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18.)

(755 ILCS 66/20)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 20. Institution of medical, mortuary, or other sciences.

(a) A qualified medical science institution receiving a cadaver pursuant to Section 15 of this Act shall:

(1) hold the cadaver at its facility for 30 days after receipt from the State facility; and

(2) ensure during the 30-day period that the cadaver is not used for any purpose other than for embalming.

(b) After use of the remains, the qualified medical science institution shall cremate them pursuant to Section 19 of the Crematory Regulation Act and deliver them to the appropriate family member, executor, or agent empowered to direct the disposition of the decedent's cremated human remains. If no such person is available or if such person is unwilling to accept the remains, the qualified medical science institution shall inter the cremated human remains at a cemetery licensed under the Cemetery Oversight Act. Upon such interment, the institution shall notify the family member, executor, or agent empowered to direct the disposition of the decedent's remains, if known, by mail of the location of the remains. The institution shall maintain at all times a registry of such interred cremated human remains.

(c) A qualified medical science institution is considered an authorizing agent under the Crematory Regulation Act only for the purpose of ordering the cremation and delivering or interring the remains following cremation as provided in this Section.

(d) If at any time an appropriate family member, executor, or agent empowered to direct the disposition of the decedent's remains makes a written request concerning disposition or return of the remains, the qualified medical science institution shall, at its own expense, return the remains within a reasonable time.

(e) A qualified medical science institution receiving a cadaver under Section 15 of this Act may not transfer a decedent's remains in a manner not authorized by this Act.

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18.)

(755 ILCS 66/25)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 25. Registry of contributed cadavers and institutions of medical, mortuary, or other sciences.

(a) An institution of medical, mortuary, or other sciences is eligible to receive a contributed cadaver under Section 15 of this Act if it meets the qualifications determined to be appropriate by the Department by rule and registers with the Department. Under no circumstances is the harvesting and sale of body parts allowed, including after any medical, mortuary, or other sciences research has concluded. Qualified medical science institutions, at a minimum, must be either:

(1) a medical college or school, or other institution of higher science education or school of mortuary science, public or private;

(2) a hospital; or

(3) a not-for-profit corporation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code registered under the Charitable Trust Act.

(b) The Department shall maintain a registry of:

(1) cadavers that have been contributed to qualified medical science institutions of Section 15; and

(2) institutions qualifying as institutions of medical, mortuary, or other sciences eligible to receive donations under this Act.

The Department shall update the registry with any new information within 24 hours of receiving the information.

(c) Each qualified medical science institution shall submit its request for cadavers in State custody. The Department shall designate the next institution to receive a cadaver when requested by a State facility.

(d) If the number of cadavers is insufficient for the use of the relevant institutions, the Department shall determine which institution shall receive them, taking into account the relative proportion of the numbers of students at each institution.

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18.)

(755 ILCS 66/30)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 30. Rules. The Department may adopt rules as necessary to implement this Act.

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18.)

(755 ILCS 66/35)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 35. Repealer. This Act is repealed on December 31, 2027.

(Source: P.A. 102-1109, eff. 12-21-22.)

(755 ILCS 66/90)

Sec. 90. (Amendatory provisions; text omitted).

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18; text omitted.)

(755 ILCS 66/95)

Sec. 95. (Amendatory provisions; text omitted).

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18; text omitted.)