Ohio Autopsy Law Respects Jewish Halacha

The Ohio General Assembly last week passed and sent to the Governor for signature Am. Sub. H.B. 235. The bill, which amends the Coroner's Law, includes provisions to take account of religious concerns about autopsy procedures. Ohio law already has a provision (ORC Sec. 313.131) relating to autopsy when the deceased had religious objections to the procedure. It permits a rapid judicial hearing to determine if the autopsy is a compelling public necessity. The new bill, which more generally deals with disposal of specimens after an autopsy, provides:

If an autopsy is performed ... and pursuant to section 313.131 ... the coroner has reason to believe that the autopsy is contrary to the deceased person's religious beliefs, the coroner shall not remove any specimens ... from the body of the deceased person unless removing those specimens ... is a compelling public necessity. Except [for a DNA specimen retained for diagnostic, evidentiary or confirmatory purposes]] ..., if the coroner removes any specimens from the body of the deceased person, the coroner shall return the specimens, as soon as is practicable, to the person who has the right to the disposition of the body.

These provisions are consistent with Jewish religious law regarding disposal of body tissue and organs. (Background.) Ohio Jewish Communities and Agudath Israel worked with drafters of the law to assure that the final version respected Halacha (Jewish law). (See prior posting.) [Thanks to OJC March 24, 2006 Internal Newsletter for the information.]