Medical Examiners no longer required to certify COVID-19 deaths in Florida

Medical Examiners no longer required to certify COVID-19 deaths in Florida The rule change was sparked by Medical Examiners in certain counties that were overwhelmed, facing backlogs of hundreds of coronavirus fatalities. Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon Florida Today

A rule change that came into effect last week means Florida's medical examiners are no longer required to certify COVID-19 deaths, instead physicians can do so directly to the Department of Health, bringing an end to what was an independent and detailed accounting of who had died from the pandemic in Florida.

"Medical examiners will not automatically assume jurisdiction of COVID-19 cases and treating physicians may certify COVID-19 deaths," the Aug. 14 motion from the Medical Examiners Commission states.

From the start of the pandemic Florida's medical examiners were tasked with tracking all coronavirus fatalities. A signature from a medical examiner's office and their verification of a positive test was required for a death certificate that listed COVID-19 as a cause or contributory cause of death. But as deaths began to skyrocket through the month of July, medical examiners, especially in south Florida counties, found themselves overwhelmed and couldn't certify deaths fast enough. 

As a result the Medical Examiners Commission resolved to make reporting of COVID-19 deaths by medical examiners discretionary. ...

Paul Petrino, operations manager, for the Palm Beach County medical examiner's office said his office was a proponent of supporting the rule change, as they faced a backlog of nearly 500 cases. 

One drawback is the potential for inconsistency, he noted. When medical examiners were certifying COVID-19 cases, there could be "confidence in the number of cases coming out of this office. Now you're going to have a myriad of primary care physicians who are certifying these deaths."

What one doctor may call a COVID death, another may not. "What that does to the numbers, I don't know," he said.

The database had, until now, served as an independent count of coronavirus deaths in the state, providing more detailed demographic information than the Department of Health's line list of deaths. It also included narrative descriptions of the cases that provided invaluable specifics such as the circumstances a victim contracted the disease and other extenuating factors.