The Task Force's 1986 report, The Determination of Death, proposed that both the brain death standard and the traditional standard of cessation of heart and lung activity should be recognized for the legal determination of death in New York State. The Task Force concluded that legislation to establish brain death as a legal standard in New York was not necessary in light of the Court of Appeals' decision. The Task Force instead proposed regulations to ensure that the standard would be uniformly applied in health care facilities and to provide additional guidance about the determination of brain death.
As part of its deliberations, the Task Force examined the questions raised by persons who object to the brain death standard on religious or moral grounds. The Task Force recommended that responses to individuals with religious or moral objections would best be addressed by health care facilities at the community level. It therefore proposed that hospitals should develop policies, in consultation ,with community representatives, that would reasonably accommodate the beliefs of those who reject the brain death standard on religious or moral grounds. In July 1987, the New York State Hospital Review and Planning Council adopted the regulations developed by the Task Force.