An Act Regarding Registration and Correction of Death Information on Death Certificates
Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §2842, sub-§§3 and 4, as amended by PL 2009, c. 601, §25, are further amended to read:
The medical examiner or the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is responsible for the identity of the deceased and the time, date, place, cause, manner and circumstances of death on the death certificate. Entries may be left "pending" if further study is needed; or, at the specific direction of the Attorney General relative to cases under investigation by the Attorney General's office, entries must be left "withheld" until such time as the Attorney General, in the Attorney General's sole discretion, determines that any criminal investigation and prosecution will not be harmed by public disclosure of such information. Notwithstanding section 2706, subsection 4, unless directed otherwise by the Attorney General as specified in this subsection, this information for which the medical examiner is responsible may be made available to the general public by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
summary
This bill adds the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner as a certifier of cause of death on a death certificate to accommodate the electronic death registration system. It also permits the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to electronically submit amendments to the death certificate using the electronic death registration system.