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An Act Regarding Registration and Correction of Death Information on Death Certificates
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 22 MRSA §2842, sub-§§3 and 4, as amended by PL 2009, c. 601, §25, are further amended to read:
 
3. Medical certificate by medical examiner or the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.   When a death occurs under circumstances that make it a medical examiner case as defined in section 3025, or when inquiry as to the cause of death is required by law, the medical examiner or the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner shall complete the medical certification of the cause of death as specified by department rule and sign the death certificate. A certification need not be completed before the remains are ready for release.
 
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.
 
4. Correction of errors on death statistic records filed under chapter 711.   Certificates of death in medical examiner cases, as defined in section 3025, may be completed or amended at any time by means described in rule by the department to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Either the Chief Medical Examiner or the medical examiner assigned to the case may sign the forms or submit an electronic amendment or file a certificate using the electronic death registration system in accordance with section 2847. A person authorized by the Chief Medical Examiner may amend a certificate of death with respect to the time, date, place and circumstances of death. The medical examiner assigned shall submit the form or electronic amendment to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for filing with the State Registrar of Vital Statistics. These forms or electronic amendments may be filed at any time after death and need not include a summary description of the evidence in support of the completion or amendment.
 
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.