Colorado legislators voted on Monday to pass a bill that will revamp the state’s lenient oversight of funeral homes. This move comes in addition to a separate measure that was approved last week, both of which are aimed at regulating the industry.
Hundreds of families have been devastated by these cases. They discovered that the ashes they received did not contain the remains of their child or parent. Instead, they found that the remains had been left to decay for up to four years in a bug-infested building, often piled on top of each other.
The state’s funeral home regulations came under scrutiny due to this case, revealing that they are among the weakest in the nation.
Colorado Governor Jared Polis is set to sign a bill into law that mandates regular inspections of funeral homes in the state. The bill, which received approval on Monday, will also grant regulators increased authority to enforce regulations within the industry. Before it reaches Governor Polis’s desk, the House will review a minor amendment made by the Senate.
The second bill, which is already on its way to the governors’ desk, mandates that funeral directors and other professionals in the industry obtain licenses. These licenses would be granted upon meeting certain qualifications, including background checks, holding degrees in mortuary science, passing a national examination, and gaining practical work experience.
Crystina Page was taken aback by the belated introduction of the proposed regulations. Following the tragic loss of her son, David Page, who was fatally shot by law enforcement in 2019, she entrusted Return to Nature with the cremation of his remains. For a span of four years, she carried the urn that she believed contained his ashes. However, to her dismay, she recently discovered that the remains in the urn did not belong to her son.
“It devastates me to think about how these individuals callously discarded my son’s body, leaving it exposed to rats and maggots for four years,” expressed Page, who currently leads a support group for victims.”
“It’s just something I wake up with every day,” she said.
Page expressed her support for the bills, considering them a positive step forward. However, she also expressed her desire for regulatory agencies to implement stricter protocols for tracking the movement of a body from the funeral home to the crematory and vice versa.
“I want every person going through this process to feel connected to David Page,” she expressed.
The proposed bills represent a significant overhaul in a state where funeral directors were not previously required to complete high school, let alone obtain a degree. Interestingly, the funeral home industry is largely supportive of these changes.
“We cannot continue to be the only unlicensed funeral state in Colorado,” stated Joe Walsh, president of the Colorado Funeral Directors Association.
According to Walsh, the majority of their members expressed a desire for licensure. He believes that these rules are a positive step towards aligning Colorado with the rest of the country.
There have been concerns raised by some individuals in the industry regarding the perceived necessity and burden of the requirements to become a funeral director. They argue that the responsibilities of a funeral director are more comparable to those of an event coordinator.
The facility, located about two hours south of Denver, has seen a steady increase in the number of bodies over the course of four years, with some dating back to 2019. However, concerns about the situation were first raised in 2020, three years prior to the shocking discovery.
According to court documents, concerns were raised by a county coroner regarding the inadequate handling of bodies, including worries about the improper refrigeration of bodies. However, no action was taken in response to these suspicions.
Months later, a body was discovered in the back of a hearse owned by a funeral home in suburban Denver, following the initial find at Return to Nature.
Christina Rosales’ body had been lying on the gurney for more than a year. It was wrapped in blankets, and its discovery came about when the owner of a funeral home in suburban Denver faced eviction. Rosales had succumbed to Alzheimer’s at the age of 63, and her husband, George Rosales, had been given ashes that he later discovered did not belong to his wife.