On first glance, official identification of human remains and certification of the cause of death appear to be mundane endeavors that serve mainly private needs of families, insurers, and litigants. In truth, however, valid and reliable data on the circumstances and causes of deaths serve a variety of important public needs, including fair and accurate adjudication in criminal and civil cases, maintenance of accurate vital statistics, effective public health surveillance and response, advances in health and safety research, and improvement in quality of heath care
