Pope's death definition affects cryonics

from the what-is-human dept.
In a story originally from the LA Times, Pope John Paul II defines death as "the complete and irreversible cessation" of brain activity. This would seem to indicate that, eventually, the Roman Catholic Church will choose to view patients entering and in cryonic suspension as being alive; this would fit with their general "when in doubt, be generous to marginal cases" position. This can serve as a reminder to the cryonics organizations that an awkward gap may appear in financial arrangements for cryonics, when life insurance no longer covers the cost, but medical insurance has not yet added this coverage. Perhaps we need a new type of policy entirely.