Uniform Determination of Death Act

The Uniform Determination of Death Act (UDDA) is a model state law that was approved for the United States in 1981 by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, in cooperation with the American Medical Association, the American Bar Association, and the President's Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical and Behavioral Research.

The act has since been adopted by most US states and is intended "to provide a comprehensive and medically sound basis for determining death in all situations".

[2] Due to better seat belt use, bicycle helmets, and the general decrease in violent crime, there are lower numbers of brain deaths now than historically.

An individual who has sustained either (1) irreversible cessation of circulatory and respiratory functions, or (2) irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem, is dead.

As of 2018[update] the act has been adopted by 37 states, plus D.C. and the Virgin Islands: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, U.S. Virgin Islands, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

The Uniform Determination of Death Act has been enacted in 37 states, the District of Columbia , and the U.S. Virgin Islands .
Jurisdiction with enactment