Bill proposes stopping the use of unclaimed bodies for research

A bill to stop the use of unclaimed human bodies for research is before the state Legislature.

Senate Bill 2818 survived a third reading last week, and has been referred to the House Health and Finance committees. The bill amends a section of the Hawai‘i Revised Statutes allowing unclaimed bodies to be used for research or education.

“The purpose and intent of this measure is to repeal the authority of the Department of Health to deliver or distribute an unclaimed dead human body to a university, hospital or institution for medical educational and research purposes,” Health Committee Chair Sen. Josh Green, D-Kona, and Human Services Chair Committee Chair Suzanne Chun Oakland, D-Sand Island, stated in a joint committee report.

The two lawmakers said the University of Hawai‘i utilizes only “willfully expressed and documented anatomical gifts,” so access to medical cadavers for educational and research purposes would not be affected by the bill.

The bill also clarifies the responsibilities of the person who has possession, charge or control of an unclaimed human body with respect to gathering and providing information to state agencies for burial or cremation of the body at public expense.

“Unclaimed corpses are exceptionally rare, perhaps one or two every few years,” Department of Health Director Loretta Fuddy stated in written testimony.

Despite the practical value to education and research, she states, sending unclaimed corpses to institutions for medical education and research “does not enhance or protect the dignity of either the institution or the decedent, who had no choice in the matter, nor does it reflect contemporary community standards of practice.”

Visit www.capitol.hawaii.gov for more information.

• Léo Azambuja, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) or lazambuja@ thegardenisland.com.