Arkansas Administrative Code › Agency 003 - DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE › Division 22 - Insurance Department › Rule 003.22.21-001 - Rule Pertaining to Embalmers, Funeral Directors, Funeral Establishments, Crematories, crematory Retort Operators, and Transport Services

Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 6, June, 2024
Section 1.
Authority
This Rule is promulgated pursuant to Ark. Code Ann. §
									23-61-1103 and
				17-29-301
et seq.
Section
			 2.
Purpose
The purpose of this Rule is to provide requirements that are
				applicable to embalmers, funeral directors, funeral establishments, mortuary
				service firms, crematory authorities, crematory retort operators, and transport
				services.
Section 3.
Definitions
1. Advertisement
-
The publication, dissemination, circulation or placing before
			 the public, or causing directly or indirectly to be made, published,
			 disseminated or placed before the public, whether in print, over the radio, on
			 television, or in any form of digital media: any announcement or statement in a
			 newspaper, magazine, or other publication, or in the form of a book, notice,
			 circular, pamphlet, letter, handbill, poster, bill, sign, placard, card, label,
			 or tag.
2. Apprentice
-
A person who is registered with the Board and is engaged in
			 learning the practice of embalming or the business of funeral directing, under
			 the instruction and direct personal supervision of a licensed embalmer or
			 funeral director of the State of Arkansas,.
3. Arrangements (make)- to advise, counsel,
			 and/or enter into agreements about specifics for any services in advance of a
			 death, or following a death.
4.
			 Authority Having Jurisdiction ("AHJ")- The individual, agency, or office in
			 this state or another state that has authority to release dead human bodies for
			 final disposition.
5. Authorizing
			 Agent(s)
-
A person legally entitled to control the disposition of
			 the remains of a deceased person, as defined by Ark. Code Ann. §
									20-17-102.
			 In the case of individuals who have donated their bodies to science, and in
			 which the institution is charged with making arrangements for the final
			 disposition of the deceased, a representative of the institution, if legally
			 authorized, may serve as the authorizing agent.
6. Bait Advertising
-
Advertising a funeral, or an alternative type of service, which the advertising
			 funeral firm, in truth, does not intend or does not wish to sell. Its purpose
			 is to induce persons "before the time of need," or "at need," to visit or call
			 the funeral firm, and then sell them a higher priced service.
7. Board- As used in this Rule, it shall mean
			 the State Board of Embalmers, Funeral Directors, Cemeteries, and Burial
			 Services.
8. Cash Advance or Cash
			 Accommodations
-
Monies paid to outside parties by the funeral
			 director or the funeral service firm, on behalf of the authorizing
			 agent.
9. Casket
-
A
			 rigid container in which the dead body is placed for use in religious services
			 or other ceremonies, transportation, or final disposition; usually constructed
			 of wood, metal, or manufactured materials such as plastic, fiberglass,
			 chipboard, pressed paper, paperboard or corrugated paper.
10. Closed Container- Any container in which
			 cremated remains can be placed and closed in a manner so as to be resistant to
			 leakage or spillage of cremated remains or the entrance of foreign
			 materials.
11. Committal Service-
			 The final rite or ceremony.
12.
			 Cremation/Calcination
-
The Cremation Association of North America
			 defines cremation as, "the mechanical and/or thermal or other dissolution
			 process that reduces human remains to bone fragments." Cremation includes the
			 processing, and usually includes the pulverization of the bone fragments. This
			 definition covers a variety of technologies that may be applied in order to
			 achieve reduction to bone fragments, including traditional flame-based
			 cremation, calcination, and alkaline hydrolysis.
13. Crematory- The building or portion of a
			 building that houses the retort, and that may house a holding facility for
			 purposes of cremation, and as part of a funeral establishment.
14. Crematory Authority- The legal entity or
			 the authorized representative of the legal entity which is licensed by the
			 Board to operate a crematory and perform cremations.
15. Cremation Chamber- The enclosed space
			 within which the cremation process takes place.
16. Cremation Container- The container in
			 which the human remains are placed in the cremation chamber for a cremation,
			 and which should be required by the crematory authority if the remains are not
			 in a casket. A cremation container should meet substantially all of the
			 following standards:
1. Be composed of readily
			 combustible materials suitable for cremations;
2. Be able to be closed in order to provide a
			 complete covering for the human remains;
3. Be resistant to leakage or
			 spillage;
4. Be rigid enough for
			 handling with ease; and
5. Be able
			 to provide protection for the health, safety and personal integrity of
			 crematory personnel.
17.
			 Cremated Remains or Cremains- All human remains recovered after the completion
			 of the cremation process, including pulverization, which leaves only bone
			 fragments reduced to unidentifiable dimensions.
18. Direct Disposition- The disposition of
			 the body of a dead person as quickly as the law will allow without its
			 preparation, except when required by law, and without any attendant religious
			 services or other rites or ceremonies.
19. Direct Personal Supervision- Daily
			 on-site contact whereby the supervisor/mentor, during the apprenticeship
			 period, is able to quickly respond to the needs of the apprentice funeral
			 director and/or embalmer. The supervisor/mentor must be on the premises
			 whenever embalming and/or funeral directing is performed.
20. Disposition Authority- The licensed
			 funeral establishment, cremation authority, or other person or legal entity
			 charged with the disposition of cremated remains.
21. Embalmer- A person required to be
			 licensed to practice the science of embalming under the laws of this State who
			 disinfects or preserves a dead human body, entirely, or in part, by the use of
			 chemical substances, fluids, or gases, in the body, or by introduction of same
			 into the body by vascular or hypodermic injection, or by direct application
			 into the organs or cavities.
22.
			 Embalming- The art of disinfecting or preserving a dead human body entirely, or
			 in part, by the use of chemical substances, fluids, or gases, in the body, or
			 by introduction of same into the body by vascular or hypodermic injection, or
			 by direct application into the organs or cavities.
23. Fetal Death- Death prior to the complete
			 expulsion or extraction from its mother of a product of human conception,
			 irrespective of the duration of pregnancy; the death is indicated by the fact
			 that after such expulsion or extraction, the fetus does not breathe or show any
			 evidence of life, such as beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical
			 cord, or definite movement of voluntary muscles. Fetal death shall include a
			 "spontaneous fetal death" (sometimes referred to as stillbirth or miscarriage),
			 or an "induced termination of pregnancy" as defined by the Arkansas Department
			 of Health.
24. Fetal Remains- The
			 remains of a fetal death.
25. Final
			 Disposition
-
After the completion of arrangements, final
			 disposition is defined as earth interment, above ground entombment, delivery
			 directly, or through a licensed transportation service to a crematory for a
			 cremation, delivery directly, or through a licensed transportation service to
			 the proper agency for burial at sea, or delivery directly, or through a
			 licensed transportation service to a medical institution for lawful dissection
			 and experimentation.
26. Funeral
			 Director- A person required to be licensed to practice the business of funeral
			 directing under the laws of this State, who meets the public, displays and
			 sells or offers to sell funeral merchandise or supplies; who plans details of
			 funeral services with members of the family and minister or any other person
			 responsible for such planning, or who directs, is in charge, or apparent charge
			 of, and supervises such service in a funeral home, church or other places; who
			 enters into the making, negotiation or completion of financial arrangements for
			 funerals, including, but not limited to, the sale and selection of funeral
			 supplies, or who uses in connection with the business of funeral directing the
			 words or terms "Funeral Director", "Undertaker", " Funeral Counselor",
			 "Mortician", or any other word, term or picture or combination thereof when
			 considered in context in which used, from which person using such word, term or
			 picture can be implied to be holding himself out to the public as being engaged
			 in the business of funeral directing.
27. Funeral Establishment or Funeral Home- A
			 place or premise devoted to or used in the shelter, care, preparation,
			 disposition or custody of the body, or for religious services or other rites or
			 ceremonies associated with the final disposition of human dead or maintained
			 for the convenience and comfort of the bereaved and the community for viewing
			 or other services in connection with the human dead, and as the office or place
			 for carrying on the business of funeral directing.
28. Funeral Merchandise- That personal
			 property used in connection with the transportation, funeralization and final
			 disposition of a dead human body, including but not limited to the receptacle
			 into which the body is directly placed. Funeral merchandise does not include
			 mausoleums, crypts, interment receptacles preset in a cemetery, or columbarium
			 niches.
29. Funeral Service Firm or
			 Funeral Directing- A person, partnership, enterprise, corporation, or any other
			 form of organization which engages in providing shelter, care and custody of
			 the human dead; in the practice of preparing of the human dead by embalming or
			 other methods for burial or disposition; supervising of the funeral services,
			 makes arrangements, financial or otherwise, for the providing of funeral
			 services or the sale of funeral merchandise, whether for the present or future
			 use; or in general, engages in the practice or performs any functions of
			 funeral directing, embalming or lawful final disposition of the dead.
30. Graveside Service
-
When and
			 where the complete funeral rites or ceremonies are conducted only at graveside.
			 Such rite or ceremony is not what is generally construed as the committal
			 service, which follows the funeral.
31. Green Burial- Interment of a dead human
			 body in the soil in a manner that does not inhibit decomposition and allows for
			 the body to recycle naturally. Interment of the body occurs in a biodegradable
			 casket, shroud, or any other biodegradable material. The process typically does
			 not involve embalming. Green burial is a type of final disposition.
32. Holding Facility- An area within,
			 adjacent or available to the crematory facility designed for the retention of
			 human remains prior to cremation that shall:
1. Comply with any applicable public health
			 law;
2. Preserve the dignity of the
			 human remains;
3. Recognize the
			 integrity, health, and safety of the crematory authority personnel operating
			 the crematory and;
4. Be secure
			 from access by the general public.
33. Human Remains- The body of a deceased
			 person, or part of a body or limb that has been removed from a living person,
			 including the body, part of the body or limb, in any state of
			 decomposition.
34. In State- That
			 period when the body is in the funeral establishment or any other place, for
			 the purpose of a wake, visitation, or viewing whether the casket or receptacle
			 is open or closed and whether the wake, visitation, or viewing is public or
			 private.
35. Interment Receptacle-
			 An enclosure into which the casket is placed.
36. Manager- A person who oversees the day to
			 day operations of a licensed funeral establishment. The manager is ultimately
			 responsible for everything that takes place in and around the funeral
			 establishment. The manager's responsibilities shall include supervising
			 apprentices, licensees, employees, and agents who work for the
			 establishment.
37. Memorial
			 Service- A gathering of persons for a program in recognition of a death without
			 the presence of the body of the deceased.
38. Mentor- a licensed funeral director
			 and/or embalmer who has been licensed for at least three (3) years, and who
			 also agrees to directly supervise an apprentice funeral director and/or
			 embalmer.
39. Mortuary Service
			 Establishment- A place or premise devoted to or used in the shelter, care,
			 custody, or preparation of the human dead, but not for the other purposes
			 identified in the definition of a Funeral Establishment, except at the request
			 of, and as the agent of, a licensed funeral establishment or its
			 representative.
40. Mortuary
			 Service Firm- A person, partnership, enterprise, corporation, or any other form
			 of organization which engages in providing shelter, care, custody, or
			 preparation of the human dead, or providing other services and/or funeral
			 merchandise at the request of, and as the agent of, a licensed funeral
			 establishment or its representative.
41. Niche- A compartment or cubicle for the
			 memorialization or permanent placement of an urn containing cremated
			 remains.
42. OSHA- As used in this
			 Rule, the acronym for the Occupational Safety and Health
			 Administration.
43. Scattering
			 Area- A designated area for the scattering of cremated remains.
44. Temporary Container- A a receptacle for
			 cremated remains, usually composed of cardboard, plastic, or similar material,
			 that can be closed in a manner that prevents the leakage or spillage of the
			 cremated remains, or the entrance of foreign material. A temporary container is
			 a single container of sufficient size designed to hold the cremated remains
			 until an urn or other permanent container is acquired, or until the cremated
			 remains are scattered or buried.
45. Transport Driver- A person employed by a
			 transport service firm for the purpose of driving vehicles that transport dead
			 human remains.
46. Transport
			 Service Firm- Any person, partnership, enterprise, corporation, association,
			 society, other legal entity, or other form of organization, that engages in
			 providing transportation of the human dead for hire.
47. Urn- A receptacle designed to permanently
			 encase cremated remains.