The ABCs of Processing Birth and Death Records

Changes and Reminders2009 Local Issuance Training

Presented by:Field ServicesOffice of the State Registrar

A is for Amendments

All amendments to birth records are processed by OSR

Please DO NOT direct people to come to our office in person. They must request the amendment via mail.

Provide the Information Packet for Amending Birth Records

(http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/chs/osr/localreg/refdocs.html#amend)

B is for Births – Home BirthsDelayed Registrations

Home births and Delayed Birth registrations are processed by OSR

Again, DO NOT direct people to come to our office in person. They must register the births via mail

Direct customers to call OSR’s public information line. We will send them the appropriate information packet

C is for Contacts

Please use the OSR contacts list Public Information Line: (651)201-5970 Local Registrar Information Line:

(651) 201-5580 or (651) 201-5961 MN VRV2000 Technical Support

Helpline: 1-888-692-2733

D is for Data Practices

Minnesota Statutes, chapter 13– Safeguard the privacy rights of data

subjects– Facilitate Access

Minnesota Statutes, section 144.225– Birth to unmarried parents are classified

as confidential and may be released only as allowed by subdivision 2

E is for Electronic Birth and Death Registration System

MN VRV2000 and the future MN Registration and Certification (MR&C)

Minnesota Rules, part 4601.0300, require local registrars to use and actively support the use of the centralized electronic system of the state registrar for vital records processing including: – (1) actively promote the use of the system by funeral

directors, hospitals, physicians, and other health care providers in the local registrar's county; and

– (2) support electronic ordering of and payment for death certificates by funeral directors.

F is for Fees

Minnesota Statutes, section 144.226, and Minnesota Rules, part 4601.0400

As approved in your county you set policies that allow the base fee to be waived

You do not have the discretion to waive the surcharges– Minnesota Statutes– State Registrar– Commissioner– Governor

G is for Garbage In - Garbage Out

Applicant information that is not accurate and death amendment information that is not accurate makes the future of records in the electronic system questionable.

Always think about 20 years later and what people will understand about the information

you have entered.

H is for Helpline

MN VRV2000 Technical Support Helpline: 1-888-692-2733

Please limit use to technical questions and to report MN VRV2000 errors

I is for Issuing Non-certified Copies of Historical Records

Birth records prior to 2001Death records prior to 1997 If you have the record in paper, microfilm, or

in another media, you must issue the non-certified copy on request

Issuance of confidential non-certified birth records is limited according to Minnesota Statutes, section 144.225, subdivision 2

J is for John and Jane Doe

When issuing birth certificates, use the name provided on the application

If you cannot locate the record, do not use the same application to issue a certificate showing a different name

You may issue certificates that show data items that are in error

K is for Know the Policies

For any task or request, know what policies apply

Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 144.212 through 144.227.

Minnesota Rules, Chapter 4601.0100 through 4601.2600.

Procedural Policy – local website/ call OSRMN VRV2000 User Policies –no sharing of

passwords or allowing someone to use the system under your login.

L is for Limit Abbreviations

Enhance the quality of the MN VRV2000 audit trails

No AcronymsAbbreviate only non-essential wordsType out names of counties, cities,

clinics, hospitals, and state agencies

M is for Marriage Reporting

Annual or semi-annual reporting of the number of marriages filed by month, broken down by the month the marriage actually occurred

Reporting of the number of marriages filed in your county in each month by the 10th of the month following the filing month

No individual level dataSpreadsheets on the OSR web page

N is for No In Person Service at MDH/OSR

There is no in person services at MDH/OSR

All services must be requested and provided via mail or fax for issuance.

DO NOT direct people to come to our office in person.

DO NOT encourage people to call our office for an exception

O is for OVS

A request for verification is automatically transmitted to SSA if you enter a death record for a funeral director

If the number has been verified, you may notice that the SSN field is grayed out but you will not receive any notification

Fact of death (demographic information ) is transmitted to SSA within one business day of the date the fact of death record was filed

P is for Paper Records & the Vital Records Preservation Project

All birth records 1900 to the present and all Recognition of Parentage forms related to the birth records are in scanned image form for OSR.

MDH holds the official record for each birth and death record in Minnesota

Q is for Quality of Data

Enter Complete InformationBe SpecificReview your work before you saveThink about the future integrity of the

system– Marginal Notes– Audit Trails– Official Record of the Transaction

R is for Retention Schedules

Minnesota Statutes, section 138.17You may destroy government records only

according to a records retention schedule approved by the records disposition panel

For more information see the County General Retention Schedule for Local Registrars and options for its use

Association of Minnesota Counties (AMC) provides records management assistance to county government entities

S is for Statutes and Rules

Vital Statistics Act - Minnesota Statutes, sections 144.211 to 144.227

Minnesota Rules, chapter 4601Text of the statutes and rules is on the

Office of the Revisor's website

T is for Tangible Interest

Minnesota Statutes, section 144.225, subdivision 7

Applies to the release of a birth or death certificate

Not required for non-certified copiesDemonstrating tangible interest does

not allow the release of private or confidential information

U is for Use Drop Down Lists

Ensure data quality and consistencyDocument TypeCitiesStates

V is for Voiding Certificates

Before the certificate leaves your office if the request is in person

Within 7 days if the request was received and responded to via mail

W is for Web Pages

Birth and Death Registration and Issuance Information for Local Registrars

Local Issuance web page: http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/chs/

osr/localreg/index.htmlMDH Public web page:

– www.health.state.mn.us• Certificates and Records• Birth and Death Registration

X is for X2XswmtS!

Your password protects you and MN VRV2000

At least 8 charactersUse upper and lower caseUse special charactersDo not include names or dictionary

wordsUse numbersUse a combination you can remember

Y is for You - Local Registrars

During 2008, you: Issued over 600,000 birth and death

certificates– Over 94% of the total number issued

Corrected nearly 7,000 birth and death records– Nearly 56% of the total number corrected

Amended over 4,000 birth and death records– Over 70% of the total number amended

Z is for Zipping in to the Future

MR & C will be coming soon

Training will be scheduled in December and January.

Now I Know My ABC’s

Next time won’t you sing with me!!!!

QUESTIONS?