Director/Embalmer laws |
Questions and answers | Latest
version 2024/2025
Who shall execute and sign the medical certification of cause of death on the death certificate form?
(If they are present at or immediately present after death) - ANSWER -Physician
Who will sign the death certificate if the decedent's physician wishes to request an autopsy? -
ANSWER -Physician
Who signs the death certificate if the physician is unable to find the cause of death or if the death is
within the jurisdiction of the medical examiner? - ANSWER -Medical Examiner
Who can sign the death certificate if the attending physician is on vacation or temporarily
unavailable? - ANSWER -Associate physician
What should the funeral director do if a physician is unavailable to sign the death certificate? -
ANSWER -Contact the medical examiner
Who signs the death certificate and completes the cause of death if the medical examiner releases a
body? - ANSWER -Medical examiner
Who signs the death certificate and completes cause of death if the attending physician dies or
becomes physically incapacitated and there was no associate physician? - ANSWER -Medical
examiner
A satisfactory death certificate shall be filed with the city, county, or special registrar in the city or
county where death occurred, or a dead body found within ____ days - ANSWER -3 days
The body of any person whose death occurs in Virginia (or found), therein shall not be removed from
the Commonwealth unless an __________ from the registrar has been issued. - ANSWER -Out-of-
state-transit permit
Where do you receive a disinterment permit? - ANSWER -City/County/State registrar
Who retains a copy of the disinterment permit? - ANSWER -1 for the Funeral director, 1 for the
sexton or person in charge of the cemetery, 1 used during the transportation and filed with the
sexton in charge of the new cemetery reinterment.
True or False: A disinterment permit shall be required if a body is to be disinterred and reinterred in
the same cemetery. - ANSWER -False
After _____ days from the date of filing, no change or alteration to a death certificate on file with the
Registrar can be made EXCEPT upon application of the State Registrar - ANSWER -30