Mar 15, 2021 2 min read

Greene County coroner Gene Rush has announced that he is seeking a second term.

Rush, a Rogersville resident and retired funeral director, is seeking the Republican Party nomination. Rush became Greene’s first new coroner in more than 20 years when he defeated Democratic incumbent Gregory Rohanna in 2017 by just four votes out of 7,000 votes cast.

Since becoming coroner, Rush said he has been focused on streamlining practices and updating its methods. Work that had previously been done manually is now being done digitally, according to Rush, which he says has lowered costs and made the office more speedy and efficient.

“We now have a computer reporting system that allows us to load and store records of the deceased,” Rush said. “We can pull data to quickly and accurately generate reports that comply with state regulations.”

Improvements in data collection has allowed his office to provide “high quality information” to the Greene County Opioid Task Force, Rush explained.

“Having solid data to report to pertinent agencies is valuable,” he said. “We haven’t necessarily had that availability in the past.”

During his tenure, Rush said the coroner’s office has received $40,000 in grants.

Rush is a graduate of Robert Morris College and the Pittsburgh School of Mortuary Science.