We noticed in this article last week that a consumer group has asked for the removal of funeral directors as “the middleman in cremations, saying it’s costing people money”.  Among other things, the group says “it gives them (funeral directors) the opportunity to “hook people into a package deal” charging grieving families for things they did not need”.

This discussion is taking place in New Zealand where 80% of the deaths are cremations and funeral directors are required to facilitate a “sign-off” for the cremation approval by a second doctor after a physician has already made the notes about the cause of death.

It appears, from what I read, that funeral directors then charge a service fee for this task and the process allows them to get in front of families who don’t necessarily want to be sold or educated about additional services available.

The consumer group is asking for a system in which the current online death documents system could solve this problem by uploading the first doctor’s information into the cloud from which the second doctor could access the information and sign the cremation authorization without the need of a funeral director.  According to the linked article a recent health system report stated:

“. . . .the current process and regulations impose high costs on the public and create a barrier for people who want to organise their own funerals, particularly when their loved ones are about to be cremated.  It encouraged the ministry to prioritise further work on updating the cremation regulations, and requested a report on the planned changes to regulations before the end of this parliamentary term.  We also encourage the ministry to consider making all documents relating to cremation available on the Death Documents website. We note that the Ministry’s planned work could address the current barriers to DIY funerals.”

As can be expected, the New Zealand Funeral Director’s Association refuted the consumer groups thesis that it was this activity that produced high costs of services in New Zealand.  Part of their answer came in this article from RNZ titled “Changing paperwork is not going to fix funeral debt”:  Association slams call to remove funeral directos as cremation middlemen“.

Related Article ––  High cost of dying under scrutiny as Members of Parliament call for change.  The Spinoff (New Zealand)

Tom Anderson
Funeral Director Daily

Funeral Director Daily take:  While this argument is taking place in a country with less than 40,000 deaths annually I think the repercussions may be heard in more populated places as time moves forward.

I was priviliged to see just how large a metropolitan funeral and cremation company can be in May when I had the privilige to tour a “Care Center” of a large American death care consolidator.  I was somewhat blown away by the facility and volume of the operations in this care center located in a suburb of a large American city.

The brand new facility looked like a modern office building from the outside, but inside housed three crematory retorts, a preparation room, a refrigerated room with a capacity of probably over 300 bodies, and an inside the building drive-thru transportation hub for hearses and vans to load and unload human remains.  It also housed a reception viewing area for a family that might wish to identify and see their loved one loaded into the crematory.  And, the complete facility was absolutely immaculate.

My tour guide let me know that this care center handles about 7,000 cremation cases a year for their locations in this metropolitan area.  I saw what I would guess was about 75 cardboad box encased bodies ready for cremation in the cooler area.  One side of the cooler area had containers with “Red stickers” on the boxes and the other side had containers with “Green stickers” on the boxes.

I learned that the “Red sticker” boxes did not yet have authorizations complete for cremation while the “Green sticker” boxes had completed authorizations and were ready to be placed in the crematories.  I also learned that there were two full-time staff members that did nothing but make sure authorizations were complete.

In all, it was an impressive operation.

Some interesting thoughts that I had —  There was at least one licensed funeral director on site as well as other technicians.  However, in a state where removal transportation specialists are allowed and the cremations are allowed to be arranged online, is it possible that a family member would never have to have a discussion with a funeral director? . . And, it may be by their choice that the family has that option.

I found that an interesting question.  Some families would probably want to have that conversation and arrange some type of memorial and/or memorialization but there might also be some families that, as suggested in the New Zealand situation, may simply want a “Do it yourself” service or no service at all and be content with not talking with a funeral director.

I’m still working on my “Attitude adjustment” —  I did my work in a funeral home that served “one family at a time”.  And that is the way it was some weeks — we might only serve one family in a slow week.  So, to see the volume of deceased human beings in this facility was “eye-opening” to me.

This consolidator, as it appeared to me, was also serving “one family at a time”.  The only difference with my funeral business was I, on average served about one family at a time per day. . . . .and this company, through this facility, was serving one family at a time every 75 minutes.

They were, however, and as far as I could see doing it like I did — with dignity and respect and, most importantly,  the way the family had asked for it to be done.

It made me realize that the way families are choosing and going-thru the Death Care operation and cycle today is very different than from when I first started.

It also made me think — will we become like New Zealand where it seems that some consumers would prefer to be “slightly distant” and not interact with funeral directors?

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“A servant’s attitude guided by Christ leads to a significant life”

When I look at the long-term trends of democratic countries — countries that I define by having free and fair elections for leaders — I see historical movement towards more “socially economic” values.  For instance, when I look at European countries that were founded much earlier than the United States I sense a pattern of less self-reliance among individuals and more social equality of government than one might see in the United States.

I’m not taking a pro or con viewpoint of that — it just seems like reality to me.  I traveled first to Europe in 1991 and it was on that trip that I noticed some of the differences between the countries I traveled in and the United States.  Once of the things that stood out to me was a sense of self-reliance being chipped away at over the years and replaced by a sense of a greater societal care in these countries with longer histories than the United States.

I think that is easy to see when you look at health care or higher education.  While there are good things and probably not so good things about social health care, the reality is that democracies that have been a round a long time seem to operate with that type of health care system.  The United States, which will turn 250 years old next year, still operates its health care system in a quasi-free market system.  And, I think, not necessarily for the better, some day that will change.

I have this vision of societies as they change.  The vision is that of a rock — in America’s case maybe it is Plymouth Rock.  As the years go by that rock gets pieces of its original values “chipped off” by government legislation.  And, when those pieces get “chipped off” they can never be put back in place again. . . . Again, for good or bad, the rock, or country, is never again the same as when it began.

As America moves forward I can envision some of our voters determining that Death Care expenses should not be a part of self-reliance of citizens but a social benefit of living in this democracy.  There is, by some, a foundational value that encourages costs to be shared by all.

While we have a $255 death benefit throught Social Security (you can read about that history here), just last September Senate File 5178 was introduced into the United States Senate.  That bill, which appears to be either held up in committee at this time, suspended because of the new congress, or simply forgotten because it was an election year ploy, was co-sponsored by two of America’s best known social-leaning senators — Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

That bill would amend the Social Security Act to include a $2,900 death benefit, increased annually by the Consumer Price Index, from the current $255.  You can learn more about the bill here.

Tom Anderson
Funeral Director Daily

Funeral Director Daily take:  I think that the idea of this bill shows a little about what is wrong with American government.  Everybody wants a benefit, especially when society pays for it. . . .and for politicians, giving benefits can get votes. . . . (Check the timing on the aforementioned bill, S. 5178 — it was introduced and received publicity just six weeks prior to the 2024 Presidential election).

One problem with this type of solution, in addition to the possible reasons for the timing of the introduction, in America is that the amount suggested, $2900, then becomes a subtle suggestion to a financial number that many may believe is the price they should pay for services.  With the current $255 benefit, the number is small enough that nobody believes that they can get services for that price.

I hope it doesn’t happen but I can see, and this introduced bill indicates, that there seems to be solutions in search of problems in Washington, DC.  However, I see the eventual passage of items like this as our country grows older and many of our residents believe in “Social economics” rather than “self-reliance” for their economic well-being.

Maybe I’m wrong, but market pricing and market solutions are a far better world for the Death Care profession to live in than one that is operated with government subsidies, payments, and increasing government regulations.

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“A servant’s attitude guided by Christ leads to a significant life”

Tomorrow I’ll be on my way to the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) convention in New Orleans.  I’ll spend three or four days there, see old friends, grasp new products and see innovations for the first time.  This is probably true with many funeral service professionals. . . . but the older I get, the more I enjoy the convention.

One of the things that I am excited to see is what Batesville described in a recent press release and referred to as “Family Choices” — the showroom of the future””.  According to the press release Batesville describes this showroom as such:

Batesville’s new Family Choices digital and physical showrooms transform this (product choice) process, making it as simple and comfortable as possible. Developed in collaboration with funeral directors and leading digital and retail experts, Family Choices respects the traditions families value while embracing new approaches to deliver a better experience for families and funeral directors.

Batesville concludes by saying “Family Choices showrooms provide a consistent way to help families navigate a difficult process and optimize every engagement. “

Related —  Click here to see the Batesville website page on the 2024 NFDA Convention.

Tom Anderson
Funeral Director Daily

Funeral Director Daily take:  I’m excited to see what the experts at Batesville have come up with for this concept.  Especially, since for a long time I’ve concluded that “casket selection rooms” are simply an expensive real estate option in a funeral home and believe that real estate space can be much better used for today’s consumers while suffering no loss of revenue from product placement and sales.  When you think about it, casket selection rooms are probably used for about 30 minutes by each family you serve and are then closed for no other use for the rest of the time your funeral home is serving the public.

If a casket selection room is 1,800 square feet that represents an investment of about $432,000 (1,800 sq. feet x $240 per sq.ft. cost of construction).  And, if you do 300 death care services a year with each family spending 30 minutes in the selection room, then the room is used for about 150 hours per year. . . . that’s only a little over 6 days.  My thought is that $432,000 could be put to better use. . . . .such as expanded hospitality space for funeral home visitors.

We built a new funeral home in 2005 and I made the difficult decision, believing technology was here to stay, to do so without a casket selection room.  We slightly enlarged the new arrangement rooms so they could accommodate a large screen monitor and then put a technology program into place where our caskets could be viewed by material (steel, wood), colors, or price on those monitors while arrangment attendees were seated in the arrangment office.  The selection process was very well accepted and we continue to use that process today.

And, in today’s world, where I believe in a growing cremation and “cremation aftermarket” for products and services, I have some ideas on how my arrangement rooms can be “re-decorated” for maximum sales of post-cremation products.  I’m interested in seeing how Batesville looks at this thought process as well.

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“A servant’s attitude guided by Christ leads to a significant life”