Funeral Covid-19 Rules

Video Credit: WDEF CBS Chattanooga, TN
Published on July 22, 2020 -

Funeral Covid-19 Rules

Funeral directors come together to push for a mandate to wear masks.

They say it puts them in a tough place to have to enforce their own rules.


Funeral Covid-19 Rules

12 days into the mask mandate and it has required many businesses and public spaces to make adjustments.

Funerals and funeral homes are one of several spaces granted an exception to the rule, but not everyone's happy about it.

News 12's winston reed met with funeral and religious leaders today as they explain why that exemption has taken a toll on their businesses.

You are legally free to not wear a mask at funerals and funeral homes in tennessee.

Although some funeral directors have their own mask requirements, they say it's difficult to play the role of enforcer.

"i don't feel like as a funeral director i need to be the police of this thing."

Lane funeral home director david keller is one of several funeral directors who met at the taylor funeral home on wilcox boulevard.

Everyone including john taylor agreed there should be no exemptions across board.

Taylors say it's important to keep both the visitor and the funeral home staff safe.

"people think they are exempt and can just come in but if it's straight across the board then they will have to have a mask on."

Despite enforcing their own mandate, curtis ottinger of heritage funeral home says it's unreasonable to constantly monitor visitors.

During the visitation and during the service in the chapel, we do notice that people do take their mask off and you cannot be the one in the middle that continuously goes up to people and say 'please put your mask back on.'" regional director of the hamilton county health department released a statement to news 12 saying on behalf of the health department saying: "funeral homes were exempted because of the religous nature of most funerals.

Even though funerals were exempted from the mandate, we still encourage anyone attending such event to wear a mask."

"most funeral homes have live streaming.

If you don't feel safe, don't get out.

If you don't want to wear a mask don't get out."

Standup: depsite the mask mandate ending on september 8th, funeral leaders plan enforce the mask mandate past the deadline.

"absolutely, yes we will."

"we just want to make sure everyone is safe.

We practice safety because the virus is real."

Reporting in hamilton county winston reed news 12 now.

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