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For a power of attorney agent to remove a body from a nursing home to a funeral home after a person dies and the power of attorney ends for that agent?

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I'd be surprised if this wasn't already an arrangement made with the nursing home prior to the death, in which case that was the POA's decision.

Getting into a fuss about this seems pointless, though.
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MargaretMcKen Sep 2023
Older posts have shown that there can be real disagreements about cremation or burial, burial in the 'home town' or locally, whether to comply with religious rules and requirements, shared grave with the first wife or the second, .....

Yes it's pointless, unless you think that it affects entry to the next life.
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What to do after death was part of the admissions paperwork when my mom went to live at the nursing home, and it was also documented when she was receiving still palliative care at home.
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riverdale.. Wow I did not take the post as the person took the body THEMSELVES!! That adds a whole new spin to my thinking! yuck... I can't imagine any place allowing this!
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I would think the funeral home removes the deceased which was my experience with my late mother. What you are describing is that this POA literally removed the body themselves which seems quite extreme and unlikely.
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Fawnby Sep 2023
Ya think? There was a Chevy Chase movie where the family drove the dead grandma across country on top of their car.
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In my state there’s a form called Disposition of Bodily Remains. It is signed and notarized during estate planning. The person signing cedes control of his dead body to someone who will follow his wishes.
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When my brother died (No POA or will), I made all the arrangements with the funeral home to pick up his body and for the cremation, but they needed to get my niece's (his daughter's) signature to proceed. She was the official next of kin. The State has rules about who that would be. I imagine sometimes there could be conflict, however. If he had no children or parent, but several siblings. Probably any one of us could have signed, I would hate to have had to collect signatures from all seven of us.
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As part of the Medicaid spend down process, it is often recommended that final expenses be prepaid, so I can see the POA having done that. Then it would be appropriate to give the nursing home the contact number to activate the arrangements if the principal passes.

Putting funeral instructions in a will is sometimes discouraged because it may take a while for the will to be located and for the executor to take on their duties. The executor would be responsible for using the deceased’s funds to pay any remaining bills due after death.

My Mom had a health care power of attorney giving her agent authority to donate organs and follow burial instructions, which were prepaid. This specific HCPOA section remained effective for this after death.

I would expect the actual removal to be done by the appropriate service provider.
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Oh gosh, why would anyone want to do that? Very strange!
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When people say “against the law” they are usually mean that it’s an offense. I doubt if this is theft, or that there is a special crime involved. 'Body snatching' used to be an offense way back in the days when bodies had a value for medical purposes, but that is long gone. I have never heard of the body being treated as an asset under the control of the Executor (assuming that there is a will which has appointed an executor who is not the POA). This is an unusual dispute.

Clearly the POA and Executor (if any) aren’t on good terms. Perhaps they favor different funeral homes? Or is this just an argument about power? If the POA contracts for an expensive funeral, they probably pay for it themselves rather than the cost coming out of the estate – which is managed by the Executor.

However if the POA is trying to arrange a completely different funeral type or location, then yes they don’t have the right to do that and the Executor should step in. (And it took me several minutes to think that this might be what is behind the question)

If possible, I’d move past this situation, which is already upsetting enough.
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BurntCaregiver Sep 2023
@Margaret

Too true. It's ridiculous not to have the POA also be the Executor of a Will.
This saves a whole lot of headache to just make that person or persons one in the same.
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The typical protocol is:

The death must be officially confirmed (usually by a nurse who then contacts a doctor). This person also fills out the forms certifying the cause, time, and place of death. The family is informed. All medical equipment or treatments are removed from the body. The body is "prepped" (cleaned, to ensure sanitary transport). The funeral home is contacted to come get the body.

It may vary slightly by facility and state.

The PoA authority ends the minute someone is confirmed deceased. Then the Executor takes over, carrying out the funeral and burial wishes, if the deceased left instructions. Then the Executor carries out the instructions for the distriburtion of any estate in the Last Will.

So, in your question, the NH was probably carrying out its legal protocol and had nothing to do with the PoA making the decision to move the body to the funeral home. This is exactly how it went when my Aunt passed away in rehab this January (in FL).
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