Counties and doctors will finally breathe a sigh of relief. The functioning of the coroner will be legally regulated

• The Act on Cemeteries and Burials still in force dates from 1959, and was last amended in 1961.
• The existing archaic regulations regarding the principles of declaring death refer, among others, to institutions that have long ceased to exist - such as the Commune National Council.
• Doctors and local government officials have long been pointing out that the current regulations do not clearly regulate the issue of appointing coroners by district offices and the principles of their financing.
• - The lack of clear regulations means that it is unclear who and on what basis is to determine the cause of death that occurred outside a medical facility - points out the Agreement of Healthcare Employers.
• The proposed amendment to the act on cemeteries and burials is to put an end to this legal loophole. The government is to adopt the amended regulations in the third or fourth quarter of 2025.

On May 12 this year, a draft amendment to the Act on Medical Activity and certain other acts, including the Act on Cemeteries and Burial of the Dead , was added to the government's legislative agenda.

The aim of the act prepared by the Ministry of Health "is to introduce comprehensive regulations regarding the procedure for determining death and documenting it," indicates the bill's initiator.

- These issues are currently regulated in the Act of 15 April 2011 on Medical Activity only in relation to patients whose death occurred in a medical facility providing 24-hour health services - the Ministry of Health reminds.

However, for persons who died in other places, the archaic provisions of the Act of 31 January 1959 on cemeteries and burial of the deceased apply, which were created in a completely different legal and organizational reality and are currently inadequate to the state of social and legal relations.

- explains the Ministry of Health.

The provisions of the Act on Cemeteries and Burial of the Dead of 1959 " create numerous implementation problems that cannot be eliminated through interpretation , as they primarily refer to health care institutions that do not function in the current system of medical activity" - we read in the project's assumptions.

The Ministry of Health emphasises that "one of the main goals of the recommended solutions is to regulate issues related to the functioning of the coroner who is competent in the event of the need to confirm the death of a person in a situation where it is difficult to indicate the treating physician who would be obliged to confirm the death or the need to perform activities and findings related to the death that require specialist knowledge".

The provisions of the draft act also include the introduction of uniform rules for death certificates, birth certificates, and birth certificates with a note on stillbirth. These documents will constitute electronic medical records.

The draft of a thorough amendment to the Act on Cemeteries and Burial of the Dead was very well received by both the medical community and county governments.

- There is currently no legal basis for including expenses for the provision of coroner's services in the district budgets - stated the Regional Chamber of Audit in Poznań in October 2024.

The RIO recalled in its position that in Poland, in terms of appointing coroners, the regulations adopted in the 1960s are still the "freshest". This includes the regulation of the then Minister of Health and Social Welfare, according to which the financing of the activities of coroners is the responsibility of "the bodies of the district presidiums (city presidiums in cities constituting city counties, district presidiums in cities excluded from voivodeships) of the national councils".

At the same time, the Chamber emphasises that the above provisions cannot be invoked at present , because the regulation refers to poviats, which constituted the government administration in the then structures of the administrative division of Poland.

District governments have also repeatedly pointed out that the current regulations on the certification of death are not only outdated, but also do not clearly regulate the issue of appointing coroners by district offices and the principles of financing doctors who certify deaths that occurred outside medical facilities.

The proposed amendment to the act on cemeteries and burials is to put an end to this serious loophole in the regulations. The amended regulations are to be adopted by the Council of Ministers in the third or fourth quarter of 2025.

The planned changes to the regulations governing the principles of certifying death are also positively assessed by family doctors associated with the Healthcare Employers’ Agreement (PPOZ).

After many years of intense discussions and appeals from PPOZ doctors, the government has finally taken action to amend the archaic 1959 act on cemeteries and burials. This is a light at the end of the tunnel and hope for sorting out issues that have so far caused misunderstandings and chaos.

- emphasizes Bożena Janicka, president of the Healthcare Employers’ Agreement.

He points out that the current law dates back to 1959, and its last amendment took place in 1961. - Since then, the administrative system, the structure of healthcare, and the conditions of social life have changed in Poland - enumerates President Janicka.

He points out that the archaic regulations in force refer, among other things, to institutions that have long ceased to exist - such as the Commune National Council, whose current equivalent is the district office. He also refers to rural midwives who, according to the law, had the right to certify death - but in practice such a function no longer exists.

Regulations that are not adapted to modern times multiply problems, especially in situations of sudden death, in public places and in unclear situations.

Who and on what basis should determine the cause of death? When should a primary care physician (PHC) and when, for example, a paramedic? The lack of clear regulations means that many cases end in unnecessary administrative complications, delays, and even conflicts.

- emphasize doctors from PPOZ.

- Therefore, the information that the government has accepted for implementation a draft amendment to the act on cemeteries and burials, in which the function of a coroner is mentioned so clearly and systematically for the first time , gives hope for real change. According to the assumptions of the project, coroners will be appointed at the county level - emphasizes the Agreement of Healthcare Employers.

- The project also envisages cooperation between coroners from different counties. This is particularly important in situations that cross administrative boundaries or require quick action on weekends and holidays. For the first time, the function of the coroner will be regulated by law, and his presence in the health care system will be fully sanctioned - emphasizes Bożena Janicka.

In her opinion, an important impetus for work on this amendment is also the pursuit of full computerization of the process of reporting deaths and births - including stillbirths.

Thanks to this, information about deaths or births will flow to the appropriate institutions in real time, which will increase transparency, facilitate the work of the administration and services, and will also help in statistical demographic registration.

- says Doctor Janicka.

He points out that electronic reporting of deaths is another step towards a modern state.

- The new regulations are also to regulate other important issues - such as procedures related to the death of soldiers and civilians working in military contingents , as well as formalities regarding cremation or anonymous burials. These are important elements of the system, which until now have often remained in a legal grey area - notes the president of the PPOZ.