(755 ILCS 66/5)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 5. Purpose. The General Assembly recognizes:

(1) that each individual in the State regardless of his or her economic situation is entitled to a dignified disposition of his or her remains;

(2) that it is a matter of public concern and interest that the preparation, care, and final disposition of a deceased human body be attended to with appropriate observance and understanding;

(3) that it is a matter of public concern and interest that there is a due regard and respect for the reverent care of the human body, for those bereaved, and the overall spiritual dignity of every person;

(4) that the provision of cadavers and other human materials is a much-needed service for the advancement of medical, mortuary, and other sciences;

(5) that there is a critical shortage of cadavers necessary for the advancement of medical, mortuary, and other sciences;

(6) that the State has, in the past, paid for the burial and funeral of indigent individuals;

(7) that payment for such services is not now consistent with the needs or demands of the current State budget;

(8) that the State has had a long-standing policy that government officials who have custody of a body of any deceased person shall transfer such custody to any State medical college, school, or other institution of higher science education or school of mortuary science for advancement of medical, anatomical, biological, or mortuary science; and

(9) that current law provides that any county coroner may donate bodies not claimed by family members or friends.

(Source: P.A. 100-526, eff. 6-1-18.)