If I Donate My Body to Research, Will the Facility Pay for Cremation or Burial?

Whether cremation or burial occurs after donating a body to research depends on the facility and how the body will be used. Payment for cremation or burial is not guaranteed in relation to body donation, although numerous programs will pay for the transportation of the donated body to the facility within a reasonable distance. If the donation program has agreed that the remains will be returned to the family after research is completed, then the costs of cremation may also be covered.

Most reputable organizations that accept body donations for research purposes are medical schools and medical research firms. These organizations generally indicate how the body will be used and for how long, setting clear expectations of when family or loved ones will receive the remains. In these instances, the facilities are usually willing to cremate the body at their expense and ship it back to the family of the person who died. Some institutions further honor the donor by holding a memorial service, where students speak about the “silent teacher” to whom they are indebted. Some research programs or facilities may indicate that they will not return the body, such as those that use skeletal remains. Other programs may only return unused tissues and remains that have been cremated rather than the entire body.

It is important to note that there isn’t a specific federal registry or program that handles whole-body donations intended for research, and likewise, the practice itself isn’t widely regulated. The American Association of Tissue Banks, a non-profit that provides standards for the safe and ethical handling of donated bodies and tissues, offers accreditation to members, but membership is voluntary and only about 120 facilities worldwide belong. Unfortunately, this means that individuals who are interested in donating a body usually need to do extensive research to find a reputable donation program since there are countless for-profit organizations that often take advantage of potential donors. These for-profit organizations frequently indicate that they will provide a low-cost or free cremation in exchange for a donated body, but never inform interested individuals that various body parts will be sold to other entities. In these scenarios, the body typically isn’t returned to the donor’s family and the intended use of the body remains unknown.

Sources

“What happens when you donate your body to science”. MIT Technology Review. https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/10/12/1060924/donating-your-body-science-body-farm/ 

“How does organ and body donation work?”. Mainline Health. https://www.mainlinehealth.org/blog/whole-body-donation#:~:text=After%20your%20body%20has%20been,it%20helped%20advance%20medical%20science. 

“About the American Association of Tissue Banks”. AATB. https://www.aatb.org/about 

“Cashing in on the donated dead: The Body Trade”.  Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-bodies-brokers/