- Home
- Advocacy
- Latest News and Practice Data
- Proposed Bill Would Alter Medical Examiner Findings in Washington State
The CAP is opposing legislation in Washington State that would allow family members of any decedent whose case was classified as an opioid overdose, to request and compel a medical examiner finding to reclassify the death as a homicide when a related conviction of a homicide has occurred.
On January 27, the CAP, in conjunction with the Washington State Society of Pathologists (WSSP), sent a letter in opposition to House Bill 1478. CAP President Donald Karcher, MD, FCAP, noted in the letter that the independent medical judgment of a physician, in determining manner and cause of death, cannot and should not be subject to override from family members. While the opioid and addiction crisis are significant public health threats that needlessly claim many lives and at great family distress and societal cost, this legislation does not ameliorate the problem, Dr. Karcher said. In addition to the CAP and WSSP, the bill is opposed by the National Association of Medical Examiners (NAME).
The CAP also noted that explicit public CAP policies and the American Medical Association (AMA) policies both affirm the independent authority of medical examiners and the paramount need to protect their medical judgment from undue influence in the reporting of postmortem assessments and medicolegal death investigations.
The CAP will update members as updates become available.