The latest effort to address a shortage of forensic pathologists in Washington has stalled, even though the national shortage is getting worse, forcing some states to appeal to the federal government for help.
On Monday, the death investigation-focused Senate Bill 5776 failed to move out of the Ways and Means Committee before the mid-session deadline, effectively putting an end to the bill as it is currently written. However, supporters are hopeful they can salvage at least some parts of the multi-tiered bill.
SB 5776 would have created an integrated data system and a violence and death investigation resource center in Washington. According to the bill, a centralized data repository would create data linkages between legal and public health data sets—promoting “a public health response to violent crime and deaths, and giving the legislature valuable tools in formulating public policy.”
Meanwhile, the death investigation resource center—which was to be directed by a forensic pathologist—hoped to develop best practices for death investigation in the state. Other goals included: identifying localized and statewide violence and death trends; developing systems to facilitate information and data sharing between medical examiner and coroner offices; and surveying medical examiners and coroners in the state to identify the critical needs of the offices.
The last goal is especially important as states throughout the U.S. continue to struggle with autopsy backlogs in the hundreds.
In the short-term, SB 5776 commissioned a study on the shortage of forensic pathologists, inclusive of recommendations to begin addressing the problem. According to the bill text, the study was set to cover issues related to visa waivers and measures to encourage enrollment in the University of Washington and Washington State University forensic pathology residency programs. The study was to be conducted by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy with recommendations submitted by December 2022.
Even if SB 5776 cannot be salvaged at this point, supporters are exploring ways to at least save the study portion of the bill, according to KNKX Public Radio.
Timothy Grisham, deputy director of the Washington Association of County Officials, told the media outlet one way this could happen is through a budget proviso, since the study on its own is relatively inexpensive. Bottom line, Grisham said, is that the system has reached a critical point—and it’s at risk of getting worse.
And that goes for more than just the state of Washington.
On Monday, Maryland’s Chief Medical Examiner Victor Weedn said he will ask the federal government for help managing a backlog of more than 200 bodies awaiting autopsies. As of Feb. 4, 2022, 217 bodies were awaiting examinations by the state’s forensic pathologists, but Weedn said that number could surpass 300 in less than two weeks.
According to the Associated Press, the office has lost at least four forensic pathologists, as well as the chief of investigations. The shortage is even threatening the agency’s accreditation since staffing has now fallen below national standards.
It’s a similar story in Georgia, where the director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) called it “a challenge” to station a medical examiner in GBI’s Macon office.
Director Vic Reynolds told the AP that—despite offering an extra $20,000—GBI has been unable to hire a physician medical examiner to staff its Macon office. Reopening that office is a top priority as it would allow county coroners from Macon and places to the south and east to stop spending time and money transporting bodies to Atlanta for autopsies.
“Finding a doctor has been one of the most difficult things that I’ve taken on,” Reynolds said, saying there just aren’t enough pathologists graduating from medical schools nationwide.
Reynolds said he has tried to work with Mercer University to attract a qualified pathologist, but has thus far failed. He also said that, despite having a full complement of examiners in the GBI Atlanta lab, the workload per examiner has ballooned far above the national standard of 250 autopsies a year.
The director believes a long-term solution would be to expand Georgia’s fellowship program that provides further education to newly graduated pathologists, but he said the group that licenses such fellowship programs won’t approve more training slots without more fully trained pathologists to oversee trainees.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.