101 Mortuary Affairs Program Flashcards
101.1 Explain the Mortuary Affairs Policy.
JP 4-06 I.2. Policy as stated in Department of Defense Directive (DODD) 1300.22, Mortuary Affairs Policy, is that the human remains of all members of the Armed Forces of the United States will be returned for permanent disposition in accordance with the decedent’s will as directed by the Person Authorized to Direct Disposition of human remains (PADD).
OCONUS, geographic combatant commanders (GCCs) will determine if operational constraints necessitate a transition to a program of temporary interment. The GCC makes the temporary interment decision, and the responsibility may not be delegated to subordinate commanders. Interments performed within the scope and direction of the GCC are temporary, except for at sea disposition and when human remains are contaminated and present an ongoing threat to the living. Disinterment may commence when evacuation of the human remains is operationally acceptable.
The recovery, evacuation, tentative ID, and final disposition of deceased military and civilian personnel under the jurisdiction of the Armed Forces of the United States are command responsibilities. Unit commanders who sustain losses are responsible for the recovery and evacuation of human remains to the nearest Mortuary Affairs (MA) site.
It is DOD policy that:
a. The human remains of members of the Armed Forces will be provided permanent disposition.
b. All human remains shall be handled with reverence, care, priority, and dignity, in accordance with Defense Transportation Regulation 4500.9-R, Part VII, Human Remains Movement.
c. To the extent possible, Personnel Effects (PE) will be returned to the person eligible to receive effects (PERE) as rapidly as possible.
d. Every reasonable effort will be made to identify human remains and fully account for unrecovered human remains of US military personnel, government employees, government contractors, their dependents.
e. Temporary interment is a last resort to protect unit health, safety, and sanitation. Authority for temporary interment in a theater resides with the GCC. Burial at sea may be authorized by the ship’s captain only when a preservation capability is not available aboard ship or when transfer to shore is not operationally feasible.
f. The preservation of human remains and PE will be given the highest priority.
g. MA personnel afford human remains a high level of dignity regardless of the status of the deceased, whether military or civilian.
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h. DOD may provide mortuary support for the disposition of human remains upon the request of DOS. The Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness will coordinate this support.
i. The disposition of allied, multinational partner, host nation (HN), or third country human remains will be given the same dignity and respect afforded US personnel. Coordination for handover to the HN will reside with the GCC in coordination with, and in conjunction with, the DOS through the HN embassy or the International Red Cross or Red Crescent, as appropriate.
USPACOMINST 0237.1 Current Death Program. The Current Death Program provides professional mortuary services and disposition of remains. Disposition of PE is part of this program. The decedent’s PE are shipped to the Person Eligible to Receive Effects (PERE). Under this program, remains are shipped to a place designated by the Person Authorized to Direct Disposition of remains (PADD). The program is operational worldwide during peacetime. It will continue outside areas of conflict during major military operations. The program may continue in areas of conflict depending upon the logistical and tactical situation.
Graves Registration Program. The Graves Registration Program provides for search, recovery, tentative identification and evacuation of remains to a theater mortuary affairs activity, or temporary burial site. Temporary burial is performed only when authorized by the responsible combatant Commander during major military operations. Disposition of PE is not part of this program.
Concurrent Return Program. The Concurrent Return Program is a combination of the Current Death Program and the Graves Registration Program. This program may be activated during major emergencies or military operations. This program begins with the initial phase of the Graves Registration Program, and provides for search, recovery, and evacuation of remains. This program ends with the Current Death Program, which provides for identification and preparation of remains in a mortuary or central identification laboratory and shipment to destination as directed by the PADD. Disposition of PE is part of this program. The decedent’s PE are shipped to the PERE. The Concurrent Return Program may be transitioned into either the Current Death Program or the Graves Registration Program, as the situation dictates. Remains buried temporarily will be disinterred and evacuated under the Concurrent Return Program as conditions and capabilities permit.
101.2 Discuss the Joint Mortuary Affairs Program to include: Search
JP 4-06 IV.1. Unit-level operations consist of the initial search, recovery, and evacuation of unit
deceased personnel to the nearest Mortuary Affairs Collection Point (MACP). The unit search and recovery team should be familiar with procedures associated with search and recovery, and preparing and preserving the human remains on the scene and in transit. The unit will designate a member of the team to accompany the human remains to the MACP and be prepared to provide tentative ID of the human remains. When a unit is unable to recover its own human remains, the unit coordinates with the appropriate higher headquarters to request support.
101.2 Discuss the Joint Mortuary Affairs Program to include: Recovery
JP 4-06 IV.2.b. All personnel handling human remains must wear the proper protective
equipment. Selection of PPE must be based on the exposure potential, that is, the probability
of contact with blood and other potentially infectious materials, the likely amount of contact,
and the expected duration of contact. The recovery team should complete the following tasks: 1) Record personnel effects located with the human remains; 2) Record material used to make identification; 3) Obtaining statements of recognition; and 4) Completing tags for human remains.
101.2 Discuss the Joint Mortuary Affairs Program to include: Identification (ID)
JP 4-06 IV.2.b.5. The source of official ID must be recorded. The ID source maybe uniform nametape, laundry marks, helmet band marks, uniform and equipment sizes, serial numbers and markings on items of unit-issued equipment, Armed Forces ID Card, ID tags, rank insignia, and uniform patches.
101.2 Discuss the Joint Mortuary Affairs Program to include: Evacuation
JP 4-06 IV.2.c. Once human remains, and disassociated effects are tagged and placed in Human Remains Pouches (HRPs), the human remains are evacuated to the evacuation point. Human remains should always be: (1) Carried feet first; (2) Treated with dignity, reverence, and respect; and, (3) Loaded head first onto fixed-wing aircraft.
101.2 Discuss the Joint Mortuary Affairs Program to include: Temporary internment, disinterment, and re-internment of deceased
JP 4-06 II.4. Commanders are responsible for temporary storage, interment, and disinterment operations to ensure the preservation and accountability of human remains. The primary objectives are to maintain morale and field sanitation and to comply with the law of war, international law, and international agreements. Human remains are to be evacuated if the operational situation permits. The exception to this is the evacuation of adversary human remains, which will be interred unless they are turned over to the HN or the Red Cross/Red Crescent. If they are interred, the site must be noted.
The GCC is responsible to ensure that temporarily interred US human remains are disinterred and returned to the US to the extent possible. This responsibility is carried out by the Joint Mortuary Affairs Office (JMAO). The JMAO is responsible for monitoring, coordinating, and providing special guidance during disinterment operations.
101.2 Discuss the Joint Mortuary Affairs Program to include: Contamination mitigation
JP 4-06 I.2.e. Temporary interments maybe required if human remains are contaminated with Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) hazards and adequate contamination mitigation is not possible without endangering other personnel.
JP 4-06 VIII.3.a. The primary MA mission in a CBRN environment is the establishment and operation of a Mortuary Affairs Contaminated Remains Mitigation Site (MACRMS) to complete MA ID tasks and contamination mitigation. This is only performed by trained MA personnel.
101.3 Discuss Military Mortuary Affairs Support.
JP 4-06 II.1. GCCs establish a Joint Mortuary Affairs Office (JMAO) within their commands to provide policy. The JMAO develops MA-specific directives and geographic-specific operation orders (OPORDs), while providing oversight of Service component MA operations and programs. A sub-unified command or a joint task force (JTF) may establish a JMAO.
JP 4-06 II.2. There are four types of Mortuary Affairs support: (1) Direct Support (DS) to a specific force and authorizes the MA team to answer directly to the supported forces request for assistance (RFA). (2) Area Support. Area support is not a support relationship, but rather a method by which a unit may provide support. An example is a combat sustainment support battalion that supports units within its operational area, hence area support. (3) General Support is a support relationship between units. The Army is to provide backup general MA support to all Services when the Service capability to handle its own MA functions is exhausted or not resident. GS is given to a supported force as a whole and not to any particular subdivision thereof. (4) Inter-Service Support. Inter-Service support is support provided by another
Service to support operations. Marine Corps intertheater air support for transport of remains between Mortuary Affairs Collection Point (MACP) and the Theater Mortuary Evacuation Point (TMEP) is inter-Service support.
JP 4-06 II.4.e Committal at Sea. When death occurs aboard ship, or when human remains are recovered from the sea, the human remains should be preserved for burial on land. This is applicable whether the human remains are US, multinational partner, or adversary. Committal at sea is permissible only when refrigerated storage facilities cannot be made available aboard ship and transfer to shore cannot be accomplished within a reasonable time or is operationally inadvisable.
(1) Prior to committal, the ship’s commanding officer ensures that the human remains are identified. When feasible the commanding officer should contact the AFMES for guidance on obtaining ID media and biological samples prior to committal. Examine ID tags and then securely place them on the human remains. Remove PE from the human remains and examine them for ID value. Establish an ID case file, which consists of a statement of recognition from two individuals and a certificate of death signed by a medical officer. If assets are available, take fingerprints, dental x-rays, and a blood or tissue sample (for DNA) and place into the ID case file. Include any onboard medical and/or dental records in the ID case file.
(2) The ship’s commanding officer appoints an officer to be in charge of the committal. The officer in charge (OIC) is responsible for accurately recording all facts, to include the exact latitude and longitude, on the committal in the ship’s log and for ensuring that due respect and honors be paid to the deceased. Prepare the deceased for committal by covering or shrouding the human remains with an HRP or other suitable material. The human remains are then weighted to ensure rapid submersion. For the human remains of US military personnel, drape the human remains with the US flag, hold religious services, and conduct military honors as authorized according to applicable regulations. The flag is used to drape the human remains prior to interment; it is not interred with the human remains, nor is it committed to the sea. If the human remains’ identity is unknown, no US or other national flag shall drape the body. The human remains may be committed to the sea with the words appropriate for the individual being committed.
101.4 Discuss the Roles and Responsibilities of: Secretary of the Army
JP 4-06 I.5.a (1) Serve as the executive agent (EA) for MA for DOD; (2) Maintain the Central Joint Mortuary Affairs Board (CJMAB) and appoint a chairman.
101.4 Discuss the Roles and Responsibilities of: Geographic Combatant Commanders
JP 4-06 I.5.b. (1) Give authoritative direction and guidance on MA support forces in their AOR;
(2) Designate a Service component to serve as the lead Service for the theater MA support program at the AOR level. As necessary, designate a lead Service at selected subordinate joint force commander (JFC) levels and assign responsibilities, tasks, and assets. (3) Assume lead responsibility for fatalities occurring within the AOR and assign tasks and assets, and organize commands as necessary to execute the MA mission. (4) Establish a joint mortuary affairs office (JMAO) to provide oversight of MA.
101.4 Discuss the Roles and Responsibilities of: Commander, United States Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM)
JP 4-06 I.5.c. Provide airlift to evacuate human remains from OCONUS to a designated DOD mortuary.
101.4 Discuss the Roles and Responsibilities of: US Army
JP 4-06 I.5.d.(1) Maintain an MA force to support the Services. The Army will provide collection and evacuation support to Services as well as the operation and maintenance of a central Mortuary Affairs Collection Point (MACP), the handling of decedent PE, maintain the records and charter of the CJMAB; and, provide technical assistance to other Services upon request.
101.4 Discuss the Roles and Responsibilities of: US Navy
JP 4-06 I.5.d.(2) Maintain a force structure to provide MA support for its units. At sea, fatalities are handled by the ship’s medical department. During peacetime, provide or arrange MA support for the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard when operating as part of the Department of the Navy. Maintain the capability to accomplish burials at sea. Appoint a member to serve on the CJMAB.
101.4 Discuss the Roles and Responsibilities of: USAF
JP 4-06 I.5.d.(3) Maintain a trained MA force structure capability to provide support for its units. Appoint a member to serve on the CJMAB. Provide and maintain the capability to evacuate the deceased of all Services from OCONUS theaters to the specified DOD mortuary. Operate and maintain a port-of-entry mortuary within the continental United States (CONUS) and as required, establish other CONUS port-of-entry mortuaries in support of all Services.
101.4 Discuss the Roles and Responsibilities of: USMC
JP 4-06 I.5.d.(4) Maintain an MA force structure capability to provide support to Marine Corps units.
