The Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner will begin testing recently deceased people for COVID-19 after the Board of Supervisors passed a motion on the issue, officials announced Tuesday.
Supervisor Hilda Solis, who introduced the motion, said that some family members were left wondering after a loved one died whether coronavirus was a factor.
“In these cases, family members may not know if they have been exposed to the coronavirus,” Solis said in a statement.
She explained that postmortem testing could help officials understand some of the county’s unexplained deaths and how the virus spreads and can also help with contact tracing.
“Medical examiners and coroners can step in by investigating and determining the cause of deaths that were unexpected and occurred at home,” Solis said.
The Board of Supervisors is asking the medical examiner’s office and other health departments to make guidelines for identifying which recently deceased people can get tested.