Who could legally pronounce and certify a death in South Carolina under the rules the AG reviewed?

Plain-English summary

The South Carolina Coroners' Association asked who could legally pronounce a person dead. The AG referred to an earlier opinion that treated "pronouncement" as certification of death. Applying the health department regulation quoted in this opinion, it reiterated that only a physician, coroner, or medical examiner could certify death.

The quoted regulation assigned the funeral director the filing of a death certificate and described who completed the medical certification, including referral to a coroner or medical examiner in specified circumstances. The opinion did not treat filing and medical certification as the same task.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2007. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Did the AG distinguish pronouncing death from certifying it? A: Its earlier opinion, repeated here, treated the phrase "pronounce a person dead" as referring to the person who certifies death.

Q: Which professions did the AG identify for death certification? A: It identified physicians, coroners, and medical examiners under the regulation and prior opinions discussed.

Q: Did a funeral director's filing duty make that person the medical certifier? A: No. The regulation gave the funeral director a filing role and assigned medical certification separately.

Background and statutory framework

The opinion reproduced the health department's death-certificate regulation and summarized AG opinions from 1995 and 1974. It answered the coroners' question through those earlier interpretations.

Citations and references

The opinion discussed DHEC Regulation 61-19 and AG opinions dated November 9, 1995 and June 25, 1974.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.scag.gov/opinions/opinions-archive/september-21-2007-1/
• Original PDF: https://www.scag.gov/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ward-l-b-9-21-07-os-8460-pronouncement-of-death.pdf

Original opinion text

September 21, 2007

The Honorable Lloyd B. Ward
President, South Carolina Coroners’ Association
Post Office Box 1092
Barnwell, South Carolina 29812-1092
Dear Coroner Ward:
In a letter to this office you questioned who can legally make a pronouncement of death. Enclosed is a copy of a prior opinion of this office dated November 9, 1995 which refers to Department of Health and Environmental Control Regulation 61-19. That regulation states: (a) A death certificate for each death which occurs in this State shall be filed with the county registrar of the county in which the death occurred within five (5) days after such death, or as otherwise directed by the State Registrar, and shall be filed by such registrar if it has been completed and filed in accordance with this section .... (b) The funeral director or person acting as such who first assumes custody of a dead body shall file the death certificate. He or she shall obtain the personal data from the next of kin or the best qualified person or source available. He or she shall obtain the medical certification of cause of death as provided in these Regulations. (c) The medical certification shall be completed and returned to the funeral director within forty-eight (48) hours after death by the physician in charge of the patient's care for the illness or condition which resulted in death, except when inquiry is required by medical examiner or coroner. In the absence of said physician or with his or her approval, the certificate may be completed and signed by his or her associate physician, the chief medical officer of the institution in which death occurred or by the pathologist who performed an autopsy upon the decedent. (d) When death occurs more than ten (10) days after the decedent was last treated by a physician, or if the cause of death appears to be other than the illness or condition for which the deceased was being treated or if inquiry is required by Title 17 of the Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1962, as amended, the case shall be referred to the medical examiner or coroner for investigation to determine and certify the cause of death. If the medical examiner or coroner determines that the case does not fall

The Honorable Lloyd B. Ward
Page 2
September 21, 2007
within his or her jurisdiction, he or she shall within twenty-four (24) hours refer the case back to the referring physician for completion of the medical certification. (e) When inquiry is required by Title 17 of the Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1962, as amended, the medical examiner or coroner shall determine the cause of death and shall complete the medical certification within forty-eight (48) hours after taking charge of the case. (f) If the cause of death cannot be determined within forty-eight (48) hours after death, the medical certification shall be entered as pending, and the physician, medical examiner or coroner shall submit a supplemental report to the State Registrar on a form furnished by or approved by him. The supplemental report shall be made a part of the death certificate. The 1995 opinion states that
[a]s can be seen, the Regulations speak only of a physician, coroner or medical examiner certifying a death. While you reference the term to “pronounce a person dead”, this office has consistently viewed this as meaning the person who certifies death. Reference was made to another opinion of this office dated June 25, 1974 which stated that only physicians, medical examiners and coroners are authorized to sign death certificates. The 1995 opinion concluded that “...it would appear that only a physician, coroner or medical examiner could certify the death of an individual.” With kind regards, I am, Very truly yours, Henry McMaster Attorney General

By:

REVIEWED AND APPROVED BY:

______
Robert D. Cook
Assistant Deputy Attorney General

Charles H. Richardson
Senior Assistant Attorney General