Exemptions from funeral law have been taken by the government in order to avoid saturation in the face of mortality due to the coronavirus and to assist funeral directors. These measures notably allow families who wish to postpone the funeral of a deceased person for up to six months.
They were established by the ministry responsible for relations with local authorities when professionals in the sector had sounded the alarm.
Concern among professionals
"We are raising a cry of alert: let us work": in a letter addressed to elected officials and to the Association of Mayors of France (AMF), Philippe Martineau, head of the funeral home network "The funeral choice" , thus rebels against the problems encountered by his profession. He cites the difficulty of access to certain cemeteries, closed water points, the lack of protection for personnel and the red tape that paralyzes their work, while the bodies of victims of Covid-19 accumulate in certain hospitals. and Ehpad.
These concerns have been relayed by some mayors who have responsibilities concerning the drafting of death certificates, information to administrations, the police at funerals and cemeteries or the authorization to close a coffin.
Additional time limits
In response, the ministry issued a decree on Saturday to facilitate the work of the undertaker. It is valid until one month after the cessation of the state of health emergency declared on March 23. And a note summarizing all the new measures was sent this Tuesday to the prefects. The text first reaffirms certain principles: "any measure aimed at prohibiting funeral arrangements for deceased Covid-19 persons is discriminatory", "the choice of the method of burial, desired in particular by the deceased, has legal value and must be respected ", and operators must be able to access the cemetery" smoothly ".
Among the main measures is the extension from 6 to 21 days, or more with the agreement of a prefect, of the time to proceed with the burial or cremation of a deceased. For families who would like additional time, the text also provides that the deposit of the bodies, placed in an airtight coffin, can be done for six months in a depository (temporary reception device). May be concerned "any equipment or premises located outside the enclosure of the cemetery". The prefects were thus called upon to identify in their departments “places” where the bodies could be kept.
On the list of "priority beneficiaries"
Among other measures, prior declarations for transporting bodies before and after burying are postponed and authorizations to close the coffin and burial can be done in a paperless manner. Some funeral directors may benefit from an extension of their accreditation and others will have the authorization to operate hearses whose compliance inspection is postponed.
The Interior Ministry also announced that funeral directors would be added to the list of "priority beneficiaries of protected personnel" in order to have all the means necessary to protect them.
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- Covid 19
- Coronavirus
- Undertaker
- Obsequies