Local governments should ensure that the remains of COVID-19 patients are cremated within 12 hours after they died, the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) said yesterday in a statement.
DILG Secretary Eduardo M. Año said this is necessary because the cadavers of the patients could possibly infect the public.
“The remains of persons who died of communicable diseases such as COVID-19 are potentially infectious and standard precautions should be implemented for every case. That’s why local governments should assign a funeral parlor and crematorium in their areas that are responsible for overseeing [the cremation] of anyone who died of COVID-19,” Año said.
However, Filipino Muslims should not be cremated because it is forbidden in Islam.
“[A]ll remains of our Muslim brothers cannot be cremated but must be buried in the nearest Muslim cemetery within 12 hours from death,” the secretary said.
The World Health Organization has said that there’s no evidence that corpses of COVID-19 patients are infectious but advised health workers and funeral staff to wear personal protective equipment (PPEs) when dealing with a person who died of a suspected or confirmed case of the virus.
Read: Private crematories asked to take COVID-19 victims, protective gear for ‘deathcare’ industry lacking
Año made the appeal after receiving reports that some local governments have blocked the entry of the remains of COVID-19 patients in their respective areas, where they were supposed to be cremated. Other areas where Muslim cemeteries are located had also allegedly stopped the burial of those who died of COVID-19.
The secretary said no one is allowed to prohibit the cremation or burial of someone who died of the disease and added that local governments should even provide financial assistance to the families of the victims.
“The cost of burial or cremation of a dead person shall be borne by the nearest kin. If the family is not financially capable of defraying the expenses or if the deceased had no kin, the cost shall be borne by the city or municipal government and the Department of Social Welfare and Development,” he said.
Año urged local governments to penalize funeral parlors who refuse to cremate or bury the body of a COVID-19 patient by canceling their business permits.
“LGUs shall monitor and penalize funeral parlors and crematoriums that refuse to provide logistics and transport of suspect or confirmed COVID-19 remains, including refusal to pick-up the remains,” he said.
Meanwhile, DILG Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya instructed local governments to urge funeral parlors to provide housing and transportation to their staff.
“Funeral workers are also risking their safety in order to provide proper burial or cremation of the dead. They must also be accorded the same safety measures as health workers,” Malaya said.
Local governments should “ensure funeral companies are to provide transportation and/or housing accommodations for funeral service staff and that all personnel handling the dead body are required to wear the appropriate personal protective equipment while performing their tasks. All PPEs shall be properly disposed of, preferably burned for disposable and properly disinfected for non-disposable, after its use,” Malaya added.
