Senate Bill 2628

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 41-61-75, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO INCREASE THE FEE TO BE PAID TO THE PATHOLOGIST COMPLETING AN AUTOPSY CONNECTED TO A DEATH AFFECTING THE PUBLIC INTEREST; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 41-61-75, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

41-61-75. (1) For each investigation with the preparation and submission of the required reports, the following fees shall be billed to and paid by the county for which the service is provided:

(a) A medical examiner or his deputy shall receive One Hundred Twenty-five Dollars ($125.00) for each completed report of investigation of death, plus the examiner's actual expenses. In addition to that fee, in cases where the cause of death was sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and the medical examiner provides a SIDS Death Scene Investigation report, the medical examiner shall receive for completing that report an additional Fifty Dollars ($50.00), or an additional One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) if the medical examiner has received advanced training in child death investigations and presents to the county a certificate of completion of that advanced training. The State Medical Examiner shall develop and prescribe a uniform format and list of matters to be contained in SIDS/Child Death Scene Investigation reports, which shall be used by all county medical examiners and county medical examiner investigators in the state.

(b) The pathologist performing autopsies as provided in Section 41-61-65 shall receive * * *~~One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00)~~ One Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00) per completed autopsy, plus mileage expenses to and from the site of the autopsy, and shall be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses for third-party testing, not to exceed One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) per autopsy.

(2) Any medical examiner, physician or pathologist who is subpoenaed for appearance and testimony before a grand jury, courtroom trial or deposition shall be entitled to an expert witness hourly fee to be set by the court and mileage expenses to and from the site of the testimony, and such amount shall be paid by the jurisdiction or party issuing the subpoena.

(3) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2020.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.