Well, that's the same as brain-dead, now isn't it? Have no head, or have a head with no brain activity...You are still alive until the heart stops.
(Yes, I know we are reaching into absurdity here, lol, but that is kinda' the point. Where do they draw the line from someone dying with COVID, as opposed to someone dying from it.)
Brain ceased before heart stopped beating though. This is why you don't shoot somebody in the head, many snipers believe anyway.