Pall bearers carry a coffin at a funeral. (Photo by Philippe Lissac /GOPDONG/Getty Images)
An Iowa funeral home director has been fined $350 for allegedly failing to properly disclose past disciplinary actions.
Last year, the Iowa Board of Mortuary Science charged Ryan M. Fredregill of Baxter with unethical conduct for failing to properly disclose past disciplinary actions when filling out a board application to serve as a preceptor, or professional mentor for unlicensed trainees.
The board alleged that on his 2022 application, Fredregill answered “no” to the question, “Has there been any disciplinary action against your funeral director’s license within the past five years?”
In 2019, three years before that application was filled out, the board publicly cited and warned Fredregill for performing a cremation without first completing a cremation-authorization form required by state regulations.
Fredregill says the board, which reviewed and approved his preceptor application, should have checked its own disciplinary files to verify the accuracy of what he reported. He said his answer on the application was based on a 2018 letter from the board that indicated there were “zero issues” pertaining to his license at that point.