Doctor Refusal Process – MCDPH Notice

On August 2, 2013, Arizona Revised Statute 36-325 went into effect. This clarified and established which health care provider can certify a death certificate within Arizona and their responsibilities and requirements regarding the process. This legislative change has had a positive impact on both the quality of reporting and timeliness of the death registration process. The Maricopa County Department of Public Health is asking for their Funeral Home Partners assistance. MCDPH is still experiencing resistance …

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Updates from the Arizona Office of Vital Records

Source: Arizona Office of Vital Records After consulting with our Attorney General liaison, it was determined that Funeral Homes do have the ability to request and receive on behalf of immediate family members, 1 free copy of a certified death certificate for Social Security claims and 1 free copy of a certified death certificate for Veteran Affair use. These Social Security and Veteran Affair certificates are to be released to the family without restriction (i.e., …

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Shipping Cremated Remains Via U.S. Mail

Source: NFDA Website Beginning August 26, the United States Postal Service (USPS) will begin placing a special sticker on any cremated remains being mailed domestically or internationally. According to the USPS, the label will not be required but it is highly recommended to increase visibility during USPS processing and transportation. Currently cremated remains are not identifiable in the mail stream. Today, if a package containing cremated remains cannot be located while in the Postal Service’s …

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TOUGH TALKING: INITIATING & MANAGING TOUGH CONVERSATIONS

Some people will only have difficult conversations when it is safe and they genuinely feel you care. When people don’t think the conversation is safe they either remain quiet or they turn verbally violent. (“Quiet or riot”). Silence is masking to agree or being sarcastic), avoiding (steering conversation away from subject) or withdrawing. Violence is trying to control the conversation, labeling (name calling) or attacking (belittling or threatening). We tend to be more forceful with …

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RACE FOR RELEVANCE – NFDA Leadership Conference

By: Mary Byers In 1960 20% women worked outside the home, now 71%. When a member would not renew, they claimed they did not have the money for dues, now the most common reason is “I didn’t have time to take advantage of your programs”. Associations have problems getting active members and officers. Time can hurt associations more than money. We have always expected our members to come to us. How can we bring the …

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NFDA Policy Board Report – July 2013

POLICY BOARD- JULY, 2013 By Steve Palmer, Westcott Funeral Homes  ELECTION I was not successful in my bid for at-large representative. Scott Anthony from New York, who was the first to announce his candidacy and worked hard to prepare for the job (and a natural leader) and Chuck Bowman, who is John Horan (of Horan & McConaty)’s manager and has served six years on the policy board were elected. Chuck Bowman entered the race late, …

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2013 AFCCA Convention – Recap!

What a great three days at convention! We want to thank our sponsors, speakers, vendors, volunteers and attendees for making it all possible! We look forward to seeing everyone next year at Convention 2014, at the Omni Tucson National Resort. AFCCA 2013 Onsite Brochure – small Business Meeting Congratulations to our new executive board and board of directors of 2013-2014: David Long, Greenwood Memory Lawn – President, Cemetery Council Paul Neville, Bring Funeral Home – Vice President, …

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2013 AFCCA Convention – Awards Banquet Dinner

At the culmination of AFCCA’s annual convention is the Awards Banquet Dinner. This is an evening of delicious food, recognition and an overall fun time. This year’s banquet dinner was different from past years as it was up at the A Different Point of View restaurant. The views over looking Phoenix were breathtaking and gave the atmosphere a very elegant, yet relaxed feeling. To enhance the beauty, Arizona Expressions provided the beautifully arranged floral centerpieces for …

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2013 AFCCA Convention – Supplier Reception

The Supplier Reception is always such a fun night. It’s a night for our wonderful vendors to shine. With light fare buffet and drinks, attendees get to mingle, network and catch up with old friends. This year we had a silent auction that raised almost $2000 for the Foundation for Children. Prizes that were donated were: Coffee Lovers Gift Basket – Donated by Greenwood Memory Lawn iTunes Gift Card and Docking System – Donated by …

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2013 AFCCA Convention Opening Ceremonies

It has been boasted that Arizona  has the nicest Convention Ceremony out there.We feel that this year’s ceremonies were no different. A special thank you to the following groups who came out to help make our ceremonies as special as possible for everyone involved: BOOM! Percussion Entertainment Drum Line  Posting of the colors by VFW Post 41 Pledge of Allegiance led by Mortuary Science Student Graduates National Anthem Sung by Taylor Napadona The US Navy, …

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