(a)
Definitions. The following words and terms, when used in this
section, have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
otherwise:
Board administrator-An employee of the Bureau
with responsibility to administer the business of the Board or another employee
assigned to assist this person.
Citation-A notice of a violation beginning
disciplinary action issued under section 5(a) of the act of July 2, 1993 (P. L. 345,
No. 48) (63 P. S. §
2205(a)) in accordance with
Chapter 43b (relating to Commissioner of Professional and Occupational
Affairs).
Closing inspection-An inspection performed
for the purpose of determining whether a licensed funeral establishment that has
discontinued business, changed location or notified the Board of its intent to
discontinue business or change location has complied with the act and this
chapter.
Complaint-A document filed with the
Professional Compliance Office alleging one or more violations of the act or this
chapter.
Follow-up inspection-An inspection relating
to a prior inspection in which the funeral establishment was determined to be in
noncompliance with the act or this chapter. This inspection is conducted for the
purpose of determining whether the noncompliant element of the establishment has
been brought into compliance.
Inspection-
(i) A visual examination, observation or view of a
funeral establishment by an agent of the Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation,
including an examination, observation or view of any of the following:
(A) The buildings, fixtures, equipment, implements
and materials of the funeral establishment.
(B) Licenses of employees of the funeral
establishment.
(C) Documents, forms,
advertising and other records required by the act, this chapter or the regulations
of the Federal Trade Commission in 16 CFR Part
453 (relating to funeral industry
practices).
(D) Other matters that
pertain to initial and continued licensure for the purpose of determining a funeral
establishment's compliance with licensure requirements.
(ii) The term includes an oral interview or
examination of an employee, agent or licensee with a principal place of business at
the funeral establishment, or a licensee who assists at the funeral establishment,
for the purpose of obtaining information that pertains to the visual
examination.
Inspector-An employee under the supervision
and direction of the Director of the Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation,
regardless of employment classification or title of position assigned by the Office
of Administration, who is a licensed funeral director who has been actively engaged
in the practice of the profession of funeral directing for at least 10 years.
Investigation-An activity conducted in
response to a complaint filed with the Professional Compliance Office regarding an
alleged violation of the act or this chapter, or in response to a suspected
violation discovered during an inspection, for the purpose of gathering evidence
reasonably calculated to determine whether a violation has occurred.
New funeral establishment inspection-An
inspection relating to an application for a funeral establishment license.
Routine inspection-An inspection performed
for the purpose of determining compliance of a licensed funeral establishment with
the provisions of the act, this chapter or
16 CFR Part
453.
(b)
Authority and rationale.
(1) The profession of funeral directing is a
heavily regulated profession.
(2)
Section 16(b) of the act (63 P. S. §
479.16(b)) requires the Board to
appoint mortuary inspectors.
(3) Under
section 16(b) of the act, inspectors are empowered to serve all processes and papers
of the Board and have the right of entry into any place, where the business or
profession of funeral directing is carried on or advertised as being carried on, for
the purpose of inspection and for investigation of complaints filed with the
Professional Compliance Office and for other matters as the Board may
direct.
(4) The Board finds that the
periodic inspection of the premises at which the profession of funeral directing is
carried on or advertised as being carried on is necessary to serve several important
governmental interests, including:
(i) Ensuring
that the public is protected against acts, practices and conditions in the
profession of funeral directing that are inimical to public health, safety, welfare
and fair consumer transactions.
(ii)
Promoting price competition among practitioners of the profession of funeral
directing by ensuring that economic advantage is obtained through efficient and
sound business practices and not through acts, practices or conditions in the
profession of funeral directing that compromise public health, safety, welfare or
fair consumer transactions.
(iii)
Educating and informing practitioners in the profession of funeral directing of the
legal requirements of the profession and of economical and practical means of
complying with Federal and State law.
(5) The Board finds that it has been the practice
of the Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation to regulate the conduct of
inspections and investigations by mortuary inspectors within appropriate limitations
as to frequency, scope and timing so as not to impose unreasonable burdens upon
licensees.
(6) The Board finds that it
is in the interest of the public and of the regulated profession to memorialize a
policy regarding the conduct of inspections and investigations performed under the
act.
(c)
Limitations
on inspections.
(1)
Frequency. Inspectors will perform inspections within the following
ranges of frequency:
(i)
Routine
inspection. Each funeral establishment licensed by the Board will be
inspected no more than once every 270 consecutive days and no less than once every
540 consecutive days.
(ii)
New
funeral establishment inspection. A new funeral establishment will be
inspected within 30 days of the date of a request by the Board
administrator.
(iii)
Follow-up
inspection. An existing funeral establishment, new funeral establishment,
funeral establishment in which ownership is being transferred or a closing funeral
establishment in which a deficiency was noted or reported will be inspected no
sooner than 7 days and no later than 30 days from the date that the deficiency was
noted or reported, or within 30 days of a follow-up inspection in which a prior
reported deficiency was found to be uncorrected. This standard is directory and not
mandatory. This limit may be extended if, in the exercise of the sound discretion of
the inspector or the Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation, additional time is
warranted or other priorities require more immediate attention.
(2)
Time. Inspectors will perform
routine inspections, new funeral establishment inspections, closing inspections and
follow-up inspections only between Monday and Friday during the hours of 8 a.m. and
5 p.m., excluding State holidays.
(3)
Scope. Inspectors will limit the scope of new funeral establishment
inspections, routine inspections, follow-up inspections and closing inspections to
information required for the completion of forms designed by the Bureau of
Enforcement and Investigation and ratified by the Board. As of the date of the
adoption of this statement of policy, the form that is in use is an electronic form.
(i) During the course of an inspection, an
inspector is not authorized to demand production of documents, or to demand entrance
to a part of the premises of a funeral establishment, that are not within the scope
of the subject matter of approved inspection report forms.
(ii) During the course of a follow-up inspection,
an inspector will limit the scope of the inspection to a review of the previously
reported deficiency.
(4)
Notice of inspection.
(i)
General rule. Routine inspections and follow-up inspections will be
conducted without prior notice to the funeral establishment, its owners, officers,
employees or funeral directors practicing at the funeral establishment. New funeral
establishment inspections and closing inspections will be scheduled in
advance.
(ii)
Exceptions. Within the sound discretion of the Director of the
Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation, an inspector may schedule an appointment to
conduct a routine inspection or follow up inspection in the following circumstances:
(A) The funeral establishment is geographically
remote or isolated and an unscheduled inspection would consume an unreasonable
amount of time if a person was not present upon the arrival of the
inspector.
(B) The funeral establishment
is not open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
(5)
Amendments,
modifications and changes to scope of inspections. The Board will ratify
amendments, modifications or changes to the scope of inspection forms only if
amendments, modifications or changes include subjects that are within the Board's
jurisdiction as defined by statutes enacted by the General Assembly and interpreted
by judicial decision.
(6)
Observation of actual or suspected violations in the conduct of
inspections.
(i)
General
rule. An inspector is authorized to issue a citation, or refer for further
investigation or formal disciplinary action, observed actual or suspected violation
of the act or this chapter which is within the scope of the inspection report forms
ratified by the Board.
(ii)
Evidence in plain view of violations not within the scope of inspection
report forms.
(A)
Observed actual
violations. If, during the course of an inspection, an inspector observes
evidence in plain view of an actual violation of the act, this chapter, 16 CFR Part
453 or other law and the violation is not within the scope of the inspection report
forms ratified by the Board, the inspector is authorized to issue a citation or
report the observed violation for investigation or formal disciplinary
action.
(B)
Observed suspected
violations. If, during the course of an inspection, an inspector observes
evidence in plain view of a suspected violation of the act, this chapter, 16 CFR
Part
453 or other law and the violation is not within the scope of the inspection
report forms ratified by the Board, the inspector is authorized to report the
suspected violation for further investigation or formal disciplinary
action.
