2023 Tennessee Code › Title 62 - PROFESSIONS, BUSINESSES AND TRADES (§§ 62-1-101 — 62-76-203) › Chapter 5 - FUNERAL DIRECTORS AND EMBALMERS (§§ 62-5-101 — 62-5-810) › Part 8 - ALKALINE HYDROLYSIS (§§ 62-5-801 — 62-5-810) › Section 62-5-803 - Alkaline hydrolysis facility operator duties

(a)
(1)
The operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility may schedule the time for the resomation of a dead human body to occur at the operator's own convenience at any time after the conditions in §
62-5-802
have been met and the decedent or body parts have been delivered to the facility, unless, in the case of a dead human body, the operator has received specific instructions to the contrary from the alkaline hydrolysis facility.
(2)
The operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility becomes responsible for a dead human body or body parts when the body or body parts have been delivered to or accepted by the facility or an employee or agent of the facility.
(b)
An operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility shall do the following:
(1)
(A)
Upon receipt at the alkaline hydrolysis facility of a dead human body that has not been embalmed, place the body in a holding or refrigerated facility at the alkaline hydrolysis facility, and keep the body in the holding or refrigerated facility until near the time the resomation process commences or until the body is held at the facility for less than eight (8) hours; and
(B)
If the body is held for eight (8) hours or longer, place the body in a refrigerated facility at the alkaline hydrolysis facility and keep the body in the refrigerated facility until near the time the resomation process commences; or
(2)
Upon receipt of a dead human body that has been embalmed, place the body in a holding facility at the alkaline hydrolysis facility and keep the body in the holding facility until the resomation process commences.
(c)
An operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility shall resomate, in its entirety with the dead human body, the container, if any, in which the body was delivered or accepted by the facility, if the instructions for the disposition of the body requested the container be resomated with the body. However, the facility may remove noncombustible materials from the container prior to resomation.
(d)
An operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility shall not simultaneously resomate more than one (1) decedent, or body parts removed from more than one (1) decedent or living person, in the same alkaline hydrolysis chamber. This subsection (d) does not prohibit the use of alkaline hydrolysis equipment that contains more than one (1) resomation chamber.
(e)
An operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility shall not permit a person other than an employee of the facility, a licensed embalmer, or a person authorized pursuant to the instructions of the decedent, or an heir or personal representative of the decedent, if any, to be present in the holding facility or resomation room while a dead human body or body parts are being held there prior to resomation; a dead human body or body parts are being resomated; or resomated remains are being removed from the resomation chamber.
(f)
An operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility shall not remove dental gold or silver, body parts, organs, or other items of value from a dead human body prior to the resomation or from the resomated remains after resomation unless the operator was acting under instructions that specifically authorize the removal of dental gold or silver, body parts, organs, or other items of value.
(g)
An operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility who removes dental gold or silver, body parts, organs, or other items of value from a dead human body, or assists in the removal, shall not charge a fee for doing so that exceeds the actual cost to the facility for performing or assisting in the removal of those items.
(h)
(1)
Upon completion of the resomation process, the operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility shall remove from the resomation chamber all resomation residue that is practicably recoverable.
(2)
If the recovered resomated remains do not fit in the urn selected or in the temporary container, then the operator shall place the remainder in a separate temporary container. Resomated remains placed in a separate temporary container must be delivered, released, or disposed of together with those in the urn or other temporary container.
(3)
This subsection (h) does not require an operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility to recover a specified quantity or quality of resomated remains upon the completion of a resomation. This subsection (h) only requires an operator to recover from the resomation chamber the resomation residue that is practicably recoverable.
(i)
An operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility shall not knowingly represent that an urn or temporary container contains the recovered resomated remains of a specific decedent or of body parts removed from a specific decedent or living person when the urn or container does not. This subsection (i) does not prohibit the making of such a representation because of the presence in the recovered resomated remains of de minimis amounts of the resomated remains of another decedent or of body parts.
(j)
Operators of an alkaline hydrolysis facility or a funeral director shall ship or cause to be shipped any resomated remains by a class or method of mail, common carrier service, or delivery service that has an internal system for tracing the location of the resomated remains during shipment and that requires a signed receipt from the person accepting delivery of the resomated remains.
(k)
Operators of an alkaline hydrolysis facility shall establish and maintain a system for accurately identifying each dead human body in the facility's possession and for identifying each decedent or living person from whom body parts in the facility's possession were removed throughout all phases of the holding and resomation process.
(l)
An operator of an alkaline hydrolysis facility shall not knowingly use or allow the use of the same resomation chamber for the resomation of dead human bodies or body parts and bodies or body parts of animals.
Added by 2021 Tenn. Acts, ch. 141, s 1, eff. 4/13/2021.