Are Autopsy Reports Public in New Hampshire? (2026)

New Hampshire autopsy reports are not public records. State law treats them as confidential medical records that are exempt from the Right-to-Know Law, so the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner releases an autopsy or toxicology report only to the surviving next of kin, investigating agencies, the decedent's treating physician, or approved research organizations.

Are Autopsy Reports Public in New Hampshire?

No. New Hampshire autopsy reports are not public records. Under RSA 611-B:21, autopsy and investigative reports are confidential medical records and are expressly exempt from the state Right-to-Know Law (RSA 91-A).

That means a member of the general public, a journalist, or a curious neighbor cannot simply walk in and request someone's autopsy report. Access is limited to a defined group of people and agencies.

This is different from many states where an autopsy report becomes broadly available once a case closes. In New Hampshire the confidentiality is built into the statute itself, not just tied to whether an investigation is open.

Who Performs Autopsies in New Hampshire?

New Hampshire runs a centralized statewide medical examiner system, not a county coroner system. There are no elected coroners. Instead, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME), housed within the New Hampshire Department of Justice, investigates deaths across all counties under RSA chapter 611-B.

A medical examiner investigates deaths that are sudden, violent, suspicious, or otherwise unexplained. RSA 611-B:11 lists the triggering categories, including deaths from criminal acts, suicide, accidents, fires, firearms, drug overdoses, deaths in custody, sudden deaths in apparently healthy people, and deaths of children.

An autopsy is not performed in every reported death. Under RSA 611-B:17, an autopsy is done when the supervising medical examiner, the attorney general, or a county attorney decides one is necessary. The same section also allows the commissioner of the Department of Health and Human Services to request an autopsy, under RSA 126-A:5, V, for anyone who dies while admitted to, a resident of, or receiving care from New Hampshire Hospital, Glencliff Home, or any other residential facility operated by the department or a contract service provider. The autopsy is performed by a board-certified pathologist.

A separate toxicology report is often generated when testing for drugs or alcohol is part of the investigation. Like the autopsy report, it is treated as a confidential investigative record.

Who Can Request a New Hampshire Autopsy Report?

Access is limited by statute to specific people and agencies. Under RSA 611-B:21, the OCME may provide autopsy and investigative reports to the next of kin, to law enforcement, prosecutorial, or governmental agencies involved in the investigation, to the decedent's treating physician, and to medical or scientific organizations for education or research.

Outside of those investigating and medical uses, the records are not released without authorization from the next of kin. So if you are not the next of kin, you generally need their written authorization or a court order.

Homicide autopsy reports carry an extra restriction. They are made available only to the Department of Justice unless the DOJ provides a written release. In a homicide or other open criminal matter, expect the report to stay sealed until prosecutors approve its release.

How to Get an Autopsy or Toxicology Report in New Hampshire

You request a report in writing from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. The OCME provides a report request form that lets you ask for the autopsy report, the investigation report, the toxicology report, or the decedent's identification documents.

On the form you must certify that you are the surviving legal next of kin. Submit the completed written request to the OCME at 246 Pleasant Street, Suite 218, Concord, NH 03301. The office can be reached at (603) 271-1235.

Plan for a wait. After an autopsy, the OCME typically gives the next of kin an initial verbal summary by phone, and the final written reports can take several weeks to a few months to complete. Toxicology and tissue testing often drive that timeline.

If the death is part of an active criminal investigation, the report may be held back until the case allows release. For a homicide, the Department of Justice controls release. The legal next of kin receive a copy of the autopsy report free of charge, while other authorized requesters pay a fixed $50 per report under N.H. Admin. Code Jus 2006.01(e).

Autopsy Report vs Death Certificate in New Hampshire

An autopsy report and a death certificate are two different documents. The death certificate is the official vital record of the death. It lists basic facts and a short cause-of-death and manner-of-death line, and certified copies are issued by New Hampshire vital records, not the medical examiner.

The autopsy report is the detailed forensic document. It describes the examination, the pathologist's findings, toxicology results, and the full reasoning behind the cause and manner of death.

The death certificate is the record you use for estates, insurance, and benefits, and it is far more widely available to eligible family members. The autopsy report is the confidential investigative file, restricted to next of kin and investigators. To understand the broader legal background, see Are Autopsies Public Records?.

New Hampshire Autopsy Report Facts

Disclaimer: This page is general information, not legal advice. Statutes, fees, and office procedures change. Verify current requirements directly with the New Hampshire Office of the Chief Medical Examiner before relying on anything here.

Sources

This page draws on the New Hampshire Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, RSA chapter 611-B, N.H. Admin. Code Jus 2006.01(e), and the CDC coroner and medical examiner reference for New Hampshire.

Up next: New Hampshire Death Records and the Death Records by State hub.