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Before and after a death

What happens to the body. You have more say than most people know.

Burial, cremation, a green burial, composting, or giving the body to science. Here is what each one is, the rights federal law gives you, and the questions to ask. We do not sell funeral services. We point to the rules and to the people who do this work.

Nothing about the body has to be decided in the first hour.
You can ask for prices by phone, and buy only what you choose.
Writing your choice down now spares your family the guessing.

The choices

Each one is legal somewhere; not every one is legal everywhere. Ask the funeral home what your state allows.

  1. Burial. In a cemetery, usually after a service. No state law requires an outer burial container (a vault), but many cemeteries do, so ask the cemetery. No state law requires routine embalming either; refrigeration is usually an acceptable alternative.
  2. Cremation. No state or local law requires a casket for cremation. A funeral home that offers cremation must tell you about simpler “alternative containers” and make them available. Some places also offer water-based cremation (alkaline hydrolysis); ask whether it is allowed where you live.
  3. Green burial. The body goes into the earth without embalming and without a vault, in a shroud or casket that breaks down naturally. Some cemeteries set aside ground for it.
  4. Human composting (natural organic reduction). The body is turned into soil in a closed vessel. Colorado has allowed it since 2021, and other states have passed their own laws; check yours.
  5. Giving the body to science. Medical school programs accept whole-body donations for teaching and research, and many ask you to register before death. Ask the program what happens if it cannot accept the body at the time, and keep a second plan.
  6. If they served in the military. For an eligible veteran, burial in a VA national cemetery includes the gravesite, opening and closing the grave, a headstone or marker, perpetual care and a burial flag, at no cost to the family. A spouse may be eligible to be buried there too.

Your rights at the funeral home

The Federal Trade Commission’s Funeral Rule applies to every funeral provider in the country.

  1. Ask for prices on the phone. You do not have to give your name, address or phone number first.
  2. Get a written, itemized General Price List that is yours to keep.
  3. See the casket price list before you see the caskets, so you can ask about lower-priced ones not on display.
  4. Bring a casket or urn you bought elsewhere. The funeral home cannot refuse it or charge a fee for it.
  5. Get a written statement of every item and its price before you pay, including any cemetery or crematory rule that makes you buy something.

If paying is the worry: which help with funeral costs may fit, from Social Security, the VA, tribal, county and Colorado programs, each amount cited to the agency.

Three questions to answer now

Write the answers where your family will find them: with your advance directive, or in a letter.

  1. Burial, cremation, green burial, composting, or donation, and where?
  2. Any service, ceremony or faith practice you want, or do not want?
  3. Who should make these arrangements? It does not have to be the person who speaks for you in the hospital, but they should talk.

Where this comes from

Embalming, outer burial containers, alternative containers for cremation, caskets bought elsewhere, and the rights at the funeral home: Federal Trade Commission, The FTC Funeral Rule. Green burial: Green Burial Council, What is green burial?. Human composting in Colorado: Colorado General Assembly, SB21-006, Human Remains Natural Reduction Soil. Registering for whole-body donation, for example: Mayo Clinic and University of Michigan. Veterans burial: VA National Cemetery Administration, Burial and Memorial Benefits.

This page is general information, not legal advice. Laws differ by state. Quality Death does not sell funeral goods or services and is not paid by any provider named here.