SPIRO T. AGNEW, Governor                          851

the development of reconstructive medicine and surgery and the
development of medical research by facilitating pre-mortem and
post-mortem authorizations for donations of tissue and organs.
It is the purpose of this Act to regulate only the gift of a body
or parts of a body to be made after the death of a donor.

149F. Definitions.

(a)  Person.—Means individual, corporation, government or gov-
ernmental agency or subdivision, estate, trust, partnership or asso-
ciation, or any other legal entity.

(b)  Body or part of body.—Includes organs, tissues, bones, blood
and other body fluids, and "part" includes "parts".

(c)  Licensed hospital.—Includes any hospital licensed by the
State Board of Health and Mental Hygiene under the laws of this
State, and any hospital operated by the United States government,
although not required to be licensed under the laws of the State
of Maryland.

(d)  Licensed physician or surgeon.—Means any physician or
surgeon licensed to practice under the laws of this State.

149G. Persons who may execute an anatomical gift.

(a)  Any individual who is over the age of twenty-one (21) years
of age and who is competent to execute a will may give all or any
part of his body for any one or more of the purposes specified in
this Act, the gift to take effect after death.

(b)   Unless he has knowledge that contrary directions have been
given by the decedent, the following persons, in the order of priority
stated, may give all or any part of a decedent's body for any one
or more of the purposes specified in this Act:

(1)  the spouse, if one survives;

(2)  an adult son or daughter;

(3)  either parent;

(4) an adult brother or sister;

(5)  the guardian of the person of the decedent at the time of
his death;

(6)  any other person or agency authorized or under obligation
to dispose of the body.

If there is no surviving spouse and an adult son or daughter is
not immediately available at the time of death of a decedent, the
gift may be made by either parent. If a parent of decedent is not
immediately available, the gift may be made by any adult brother
or sister of decedent. But, if there is known to be a controversy
within the class of persons first entitled to make the gift, the gift
shall not be accepted. The persons authorized by this subsection
to make the gift may execute the document of gift either after
death, or during a terminal illness. The decedent may be a minor
or a still-born infant.

(c) If the gift is made by a person designated in Section 149G(b)
of this Act, it shall be by written or telegraphic consent.