New York City has an annual budget of $70 million and a chunk of that is going towards heavy-duty body bags—nearly $100,000 to be exact. An estimated $95,000 will be spent this year to purchase 5,500 body bags used for disasters or bodies that are in "bad shape." Another 13,000 used to hold bodies coming from hospitals, autopsies and homes will be purchased as well.
The heavy-duty bags cost $21.92 each, while the other pouches range in price from $6.86 for adults to $2.49 for infants. That's a small chunk of money compared to the overall budget, and for what the city is paying, you'd think doctors would care a little bit more about getting the cause of death correct on death certificates.
[via City Room]
