South Carolina coroners ask if they must release names of COVID-19 dead

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina’s coroners are asking the state’s top lawyer whether they have to release the names of people who die because of COVID-19 to the public.

York County Coroner Sabrina Gast sent a letter to Attorney General Alan Wilson asking for his office’s legal opinion on whether the typical information a coroner releases in an unusual death — names, ages and locations — need to be released in COVID19 deaths.

“Most of the time, natural deaths are of no interest to media, however, you can imagine that in our current environment, the media is very interested. Our concern grows out of safety of the families left behind,” Gast wrote in her letter on behalf of the South Carolina Coroners Association.

Wilson’s office has not published an opinion yet, spokesman Robert Kittle said in an email Tuesday.

The letter was first reported by The Greenville News, which also contacted every county coroner where a coronavirus death has happened in South Carolina.

Under state law, hospitals do not have to report deaths to coroners of patients under a doctor’s care for more than 24 hours. Many coronavirus deaths happened in those circumstances, although some coroners said they are told of all hospital deaths.

Anderson County Corner Greg Shore released to the newspaper names, ages and as much background as he had on his county’s four deaths.

At least two Clarendon County residents have died from the virus. Coroner Bucky Mock said the hospital where the patients died refuses to release information, citing federal patient privacy laws. Without the information, Mock said he can’t study the local impact of COVID-19.

Some coroners told the newspaper they have had more deaths than the state Department of Health and Environmental Control is reporting.