Funeral – Can you lay out a dead person who has had Covid-19?

In December a family buried an elderly woman from the Fricktal. Shortly before that, the deceased tested positive for Corona. Is it even allowed to lay a person out in such a case? The cantonal department of health and social affairs (DGS) declares that the procedure was permissible. Nevertheless, special regulations must be observed for dead people who have tested positive for the corona virus, as the newspapers from CH Media write.

The communes in the cantons are always responsible for burials and the respective “minimum health standards”. These include, for example, the depth of the grave, the materials used for the coffin and urn and the various burial sites.

“Dealing with the deceased who suffered from a communicable disease or even from a dangerous communicable disease is regulated in the federal epidemic ordinance, which is authoritative for the canton, the municipalities and the undertakers”, says Maria Gares, spokeswoman for the DGS, towards the CH media.

However, the corpse should not be touched. Laying out people who tested positive are not per se inadmissible and must be assessed on a case-by-case basis, says Gares. Most of the Covid-19 is transmitted through long-term contact by droplets. Therefore, it is fundamentally important to refrain from direct body contact without gloves. Hand disinfection should also take place.

The municipalities are responsible for protection concepts in publicly accessible facilities such as cemeteries or churches. If you want to see the exact regulations for burials, you can find them here.