SECTION 235:10-14-1. Requirements


Latest version.
  • (a)   Unembalmed human remains awaiting cremation must be placed in refrigerated storage at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or less. All crematories shall have refrigerated storage facilities with a capacity equal to or greater than their average daily case load. If storage facilities are full, additional remains should not be accepted. Human remains shall never be stacked or placed upon other human remains. For purposes of this rule stacked shall mean in direct contact with one body on top of the other body. Storage facilities should not be in public view.
    (b)   From receiving through storage, cremation, processing, packaging and release, proper identification must accompany the remains at all times.
    (c)   Crematories licensed by the Funeral Board shall be used exclusively for the cremation of human remains.
    (d)   Upon completion of the cremation, and insofar as practicable, all of the recoverable residue of the cremation process shall be removed from the cremation chamber. If possible, the noncombustible materials or items shall be separated from the cremated remains and disposed of, in a lawful manner, by the crematory. The cremated remains shall be reduced by motorized mechanical device to granulated appearance appropriate for final disposition.
    (e)   The cremated remains with proper identification shall be placed in a temporary container or urn, unless specific written authorization has been received from the authorizing agent which directs otherwise.
    (f)   If the cremated remains will not fit within the dimensions of a temporary container or urn, the remainder of the cremated remains shall be returned to the authorizing agent or its representative in a separate container attached to the first container or urn identifying such containers as belonging together.
    (g)   The walls and floor of the cremator work area must be constructed, and of such materials, and finished in a way that they may be cleaned and disinfected.
    (h)   The Crematory area shall not have a passageway for public use.
    (i)   Cremation log will be maintained by the crematory that contains the following:
    (1)   Name of deceased
    (2)   Name and address of Authorized Representative
    (3)   Cremation permit number from the Oklahoma Medical Examiner's Office
    (4)   Cremation date
    (5)   Funeral home or commercial embalming establishment handling cremation
    (j)   No human remains may be cremated without first obtaining a cremation permit from the proper agency of the state where death occurred.
    (k)   Identification of Dead Human Bodies. In addition to the cremation log provided in Section 235:10-14-1 (i):
    (1)   A non-detachable bracelet attached at all times to the human remains shall identify each human body in the possession or custody of the funeral establishment, commercial embalming establishment, or crematory in this state.
    (2)   The non-detachable bracelet must at a minimum contain the following information:
    (A)   First and last name of deceased
    (B)   Date of Death
[Source: Added at 26 Ok Reg 1883, eff 6-25-09; Amended at 35 Ok Reg 1214, eff 9-14-18]

Note

EDITOR’S NOTE: See Editor's Note at the beginning of this Subchapter 14.