Costs of transportation of bodies; when state will pay; amount of payment

Whenever an examination of a body is ordered pursuant to §61-12-8 and §61-12-10 of this code and the body of the deceased is transported to the central laboratory or other place of examination, the reasonable cost of the transportation shall be paid by the state out of funds appropriated to or for the use of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Transportation at state expense shall be provided from the place where the body is being kept at the time the examination is ordered to the central laboratory or other place of examination, and, upon completion of the examination, to the place designated by the person entitled to possession of the body: Provided, That if the body is to be returned a greater distance than it was taken for the examination, the state shall only be obligated for the cost of return of the body equal to or less than that incurred to take the body for the examination. The payment shall be of a reasonable amount set by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, including, but not limited to, payment of any part of the total cost as the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner allows.