Rutgers Law

New Jersey Statutes, Title: 26, HEALTH AND VITAL STATISTICS

    Chapter 6:

      Section: 26:6-78: Definitions relative to anatomical gifts.

          2. As used in this act:

"Adult" means a person who is at least 18 years of age.

"Advance directive for health care" means an advance directive for health care that is executed pursuant to P.L.1991, c.201 (C.26:2H-53 et seq.).

"Agent" means a person who is authorized to act as a health care representative by an advance directive for health care or is expressly authorized to make an anatomical gift on a donor's behalf by any other record signed by the donor.

"Anatomical gift" means a donation of all or part of a human body to take effect after the donor's death for the purpose of transplantation, therapy, research, or education.

"Civil union partner" means one partner in a civil union couple as defined in section 2 of P.L.2006, c.103 (C.37:1-29).

"Decedent" means a deceased person whose body or part is or may be the source of an anatomical gift, and includes a stillborn infant or fetus.

"Designated requester" means a hospital employee who has completed a course offered or approved by an organ procurement organization.

"Disinterested witness" means a witness other than: the spouse, civil union partner, domestic partner, child, parent, sibling, grandchild, grandparent, or guardian of the person who makes, amends, revokes, or refuses to make an anatomical gift; another adult who exhibited special care and concern for the decedent; or a person to whom an anatomical gift may pass pursuant to section 10 of P.L.2008, c.50 (C.26:6-86).

"Document of gift" means a donor card or other record used to make an anatomical gift, and includes a statement or symbol on a driver's license, identification card, or donor registry.

"Domestic partner" means a domestic partner as defined in section 3 of P.L.2003, c.246 (C.26:8A-3).

"Donor" means a person whose body or part is the subject of an anatomical gift.

"Donor registry" means a database that contains records of anatomical gifts.

"Driver's license" means a license or permit issued by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission to operate a vehicle, whether or not conditions are attached to the license or permit.

"Eye bank" means an entity that is licensed, accredited, or regulated under federal or State law to engage in the recovery, screening, testing, processing, storage, or distribution of human eyes or portions of human eyes.

"Guardian" means a person appointed by a court to make decisions regarding the support, care, education, health, or welfare of another individual, but does not include a guardian ad litem.

"Hospital" means an institution, whether operated for profit or not, whether maintained, supervised, or controlled by an agency of State government or a county or municipality or not, which maintains and operates facilities for the diagnosis, treatment, or care of two or more non-related individuals with an illness, injury, or disability, and where emergency, outpatient, surgical, obstetrical, convalescent, or other medical and nursing care is rendered for periods exceeding 24 hours.

"Identification card" means an identification card issued by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission.

"Medical examiner" means the Chief State Medical Examiner, Deputy Chief State Medical Examiner, a county or intercounty medical examiner or assistant county or intercounty medical examiner, performing their duties pursuant to P.L.2018, c.62 (C.26:6B-1 et al.).

"Minor" means a person who is under 18 years of age.

"Organ procurement organization" means an entity designated by the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services as an organ procurement organization.

"Parent" means a parent whose parental rights have not been terminated.

"Part" means an organ, eye, or tissue of a human being, but does not include the whole body.

"Physician" means a person authorized to practice medicine or osteopathy under the laws of any state.

"Procurement organization" means an eye bank, organ procurement organization, or tissue bank.

"Prospective donor" means a person who is dead or whose death is imminent and has been determined by a procurement organization to have a part that could be medically suitable for transplantation, therapy, research, or education, but does not include an individual who has made a refusal.

"Reasonably available" means able to be contacted by a procurement organization without undue effort and willing and able to act in a timely manner consistent with existing medical criteria necessary for the making of an anatomical gift.

"Recipient" means a person into whose body a decedent's part has been or is intended to be transplanted.

"Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form.

"Refusal" means a record created pursuant to P.L.2008, c.50 (C.26:6-77 et seq.) that expressly states an intent to bar other persons from making an anatomical gift of a person's body or part.

"Sign" means, with the present intent to authenticate or adopt a record, to execute or adopt a tangible symbol, or to attach to or logically associate with the record an electronic symbol, sound, or process.

"State" means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.

"Technician" means a person who is determined to be qualified to remove or process parts by an appropriate organization that is licensed, accredited, or regulated under federal or State law, and includes an enucleator.

"Tissue" means a portion of the human body other than an organ or an eye, but does not include blood unless it is needed to facilitate the use of other parts or is donated for the purpose of research or education.

"Tissue bank" means an entity that is licensed, accredited, or regulated under federal or State law to engage in the recovery, screening, testing, processing, storage, or distribution of tissue.

"Transplant hospital" means a hospital that furnishes organ transplants and other medical and surgical specialty services required for the care of transplant patients.

L.2008, c.50, s.2; amended 2017, c.131, s.106; 2018, c.62, s.28.

This section added to the Rutgers Database: 2018-08-17 13:17:57.

Older versions of 26:6-78 (if available):

Court decisions that cite this statute: CLICK HERE.