Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Indigent Burials topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Funeral directors urge Akron to abandon plan for single provider of indigent burials
Summary
Two local funeral directors told Akron City Council that a proposed contract to designate a single funeral home for indigent burials would harm families and communities; they urged collaboration, improved screening and use of state reimbursement funds.
Two funeral directors who addressed Akron City Council during the public comment period said a city plan to designate a single funeral home to handle indigent burials would create problems for families and communities.
Scott Mason, a funeral home owner on East Market Street who said he has served the community for 31 years, told the council he was informed the city had proposed a single‑supplier contract for indigent burials. Mason called instead for collaboration between funeral homes and city officials, improved screening for eligibility and an option for permanent cemetery burial through local cemeteries. “I think that from collaborating with the funeral homes and the city officials, we could do much, much better than anything that I've seen in that measure,” Mason said.
Charles Wilson, who identified himself as state president of the Ohio Funeral Directors Association and also operates a funeral home in Akron, said families choose funeral homes based on trust and cultural preference and that forcing a single supplier would risk turning families away. “People go to funeral homes because they trust the people that are at the funeral home,” Wilson said. “To have someone pass away and go to that funeral home and then them being told they can't serve them is not a good idea in so many different ways.”
Wilson and Mason also urged the city to apply for state reimbursement through the indigent burial fund. Wilson said the fund had once been $1 million statewide, was later reduced and is currently $250,000; he said the amount is underused by counties and municipalities. Mason suggested that partnerships with local cemeteries, screening reforms and more aggressive use of available state funds could reduce the city's indigent burial expenses and improve service.
Council did not record immediate action in response to the speakers’ remarks during the meeting. The comments appeared during the public comment period and were not followed by committee referrals or votes in the session record.
