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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
2nd Session of the 60th Legislature (2026)
SENATE BILL 1485 By: Bergstrom
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to medicolegal investigations;
amending 63 O.S. 2021, Section 1-317d, which relates
to sudden unexplained infant death investigations;
defining terms; broadening applicability of certain
requirements; describing investigations; requiring
certain documentation and reporting of specified
cases; amending 63 O.S. 2021, Section 938, as amended
by Section 3, Chapter 263, O.S.L. 2024 (63 O.S. Supp.
2025, Section 938), which relates to types of deaths
to be investigated; requiring investigation of
certain deaths; updating statutory reference;
providing for recodification; and providing an
effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 63 O.S. 2021, Section 1-317d, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 1-317d. A. As used in this section:
1. “Sudden arrhythmic death syndrome” (SADS) means the sudden
and unexpected death due to cardiac arrhythmia, as determined by
performance of an investigation, of a young, apparently healthy
individual with no previously diagnosed structural heart disease;
2. “Sudden death in the young” (SDY) means the sudden and
unexpected death of an individual younger than twenty (20) years of
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age due to natural causes including, but not limited to, sudden
cardiac death or sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP), which
death remains unexplained after investigation;
3. “Sudden infant death syndrome” (SIDS) means the sudden death
of an infant younger than one year of age that remains unexplained
after investigation;
4. “Sudden unexpected infant death” (SUID) means the sudden and
unexpected death of an infant younger than one (1) year of age,
whether explained or unexplained, including, but not limited to,
death caused by SIDS, accidental suffocation, or other potential
causes; and
5. “Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID) and Sudden Death in
the Young (SDY) Case Registry” means the national surveillance
system coordinated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
and the National Institutes of Health which collects standardized
data on sudden and unexpected deaths in individuals younger than
twenty (20) years of age.
B. 1. When the death of an infant occurs or child dies
suddenly and unexpectedly in this state and the cause of death is
considered undetermined, including cases of SIDS, SUID, or SDY, a
medical examiner shall conduct a sudden unexplained infant death
investigation (SUIDI) an investigation not more than forty-eight
(48) hours after the death has occurred. The medical examiner or a
medical examiner investigator currently certified by the American
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Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators shall investigation shall
include:
a. an autopsy if deemed necessary by the medical examiner
to determine the cause of death,
b. microscopic and toxicology studies,
c. a review of the infant’s or child’s immunization and
medical records, as available through the state’s
immunization registry, from the infant’s or child’s
pediatrician or primary care practitioner, or from
other sources, and
d. an interview of the parent, legal guardian or
caregiver of, or person who last had contact with, the
deceased infant and shall fill out the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention’s SUIDI reporting form
accordingly or child.
2. The medical examiner shall document in the investigative
report any immunizations or emergency countermeasures administered
to the infant or child within ninety (90) days before the infant’s
or child’s death, report the case to the SUID and SDY Case Registry
in accordance with protocols established by the Board of Medicolegal
Investigations and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
and forward such report to the State Department of Health.
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C. 1. When a sudden death of an individual of any age that is
suspected to be caused by SADS occurs, a medical examiner shall
conduct an investigation. The investigation shall include:
a. an autopsy if deemed necessary by the medical examiner
to determine the cause of death,
b. microscopic and toxicology studies, and
c. a review of the individual’s immunization and medical
records, as available through state health databases
or other sources.
2. The medical examiner shall document in the investigative
report any immunizations or emergency countermeasures administered
to the individual within ninety (90) days before his or her death,
report the case to the SUID and SDY Case Registry if the individual
was younger than twenty (20) years of age at the time of death, in
accordance with protocols established by the Board of Medicolegal
Investigations and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
and forward such report to the State Department of Health.
D. The State Department of Health shall retain a copy of each
completed SUIDI reporting form in order to compile report for the
purpose of compiling accurate and reliable data on SUIDI SIDS, SUID,
SDY, and SADS to aid and inform the policies of the Department, and
the Department shall provide a copy of each completed SUIDI
reporting form to the Child Death Review Board.
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B. As used in this section, “medical examiner” means the Chief
Medical Examiner, the Deputy Chief Medical Examiner or a medical
examiner appointed by the Chief Medical Examiner pursuant to Section
937 of Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 63 O.S. 2021, Section 938, as
amended by Section 3, Chapter 263, O.S.L. 2024 (63 O.S. Supp. 2025,
Section 938), is amended to read as follows:
Section 938. A. All human deaths of the types listed herein
shall be investigated as provided by law:
1. Violent deaths, whether apparently homicidal, suicidal, or
accidental;
2. Deaths under suspicious, unusual, or unnatural
circumstances;
3. Deaths related to disease which might constitute a threat to
public health;
4. Deaths unattended by a licensed physician for a fatal or
potentially fatal illness;
5. Deaths that are medically unexpected and that occur in the
course of a therapeutic procedure;
6. Deaths of any persons detained or occurring in custody of
the Department of Corrections or a county jail;
7. Deaths of persons whose bodies are to be cremated,
transported out of the state, donated to educational entities, to
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include limited portions of the body, or otherwise made ultimately
unavailable for pathological study; and
8. Maternal deaths that occur during pregnancy or within one
(1) year of termination of pregnancy reported by a hospital or
birthing center under Section 2 of this act Section 1-702f of this
title; and
9. Deaths involving sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), sudden
unexpected infant death (SUID), sudden death in the young (SDY), or
sudden arrhythmic death syndrome (SADS) as provided by Section 1-
317d of this title.
B. The Chief Medical Examiner shall state on the certificate of
death of all persons whose death was caused by execution pursuant to
a lawful court order that the cause of death was the execution of
such order.
SECTION 3. RECODIFICATION 63 O.S. 2021, Section 1-317d,
as amended by Section 1 of this act, shall be recodified as Section
941c of Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes, unless there is created a
duplication in numbering.
SECTION 4. This act shall become effective November 1, 2026.
60-2-2468 DC 1/8/2026 7:17:40 PM