Arapahoe coroner plans grant request of up to $500,000 for lab equipment, training
The federal application is due Nov. 5; the proposed grant period is 36 months.
Published at
Arapahoe County’s Coroner’s Office plans to seek up to $500,000 in federal funding to replace unserviceable histology equipment and train medical death investigators. County commissioners signaled support for the application Oct. 27.
The application to the U.S. Department of Justice’s Paul Coverdell program is due Nov. 5, 2026, and would cover a 36-month grant period, the county’s application report says. The equipment is more than 20 years old and cannot be serviced, the report says. When it breaks down, specimens must be sent elsewhere to prepare tissue slides, slowing medical examiners’ reviews and raising concerns about quality control and possible loss or damage. The office also wants training to help its medical death investigators earn professional certification.
The equipment project’s scope and budget were still being finalized and were expected to exceed $100,000, the county report says. At the study session, the office said it hoped to request up to $500,000 for the equipment and all investigator training but did not provide a breakdown.
The Coverdell proposal is separate from the county’s proposed $450,000 application to the federal COSSUP program for toxicology testing and a part-time epidemiologist. That request was not an award, the county’s September report says.